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PHOTOGRAPHIG 
PRIMER^sg^ 


E 


J  O^KmiNGToN  I  J  C-MILLEN  M-D- 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2014 


https://archive.org/details/photographicprimOOwort_0 


O/r 


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PHOTOGRAPHIC  PRIMER 


THE 

Photographic  Primer 

&  OUnuaf  of  (practice 

BY 

J.  C.  WORTHINGTON  &  J.  C.  MILLEN,  M.D. 


Qfittoerfon 

THE  RIVERTON  PRESS 


MDCCCXCVl 


COPYRIGHT  189% 
BY 

C.  WOR  THING  TON 
AND 
J.  C.  MILLEN 


Printed  and  elect  rotyped  for  the  Riverton  Press 
Riverton,  N.  J.,  by 

At.  pleasant  {printer? 

J.  Horace  McFarland  Co. 
Harrisburg,  Pa. 


PREFATORY  NOTE 


PREFATORY  NOTE 

This  little  manual,  which  now  seeks  audience, 
is  not  the  mouthpiece  of  a  manufacturer,  neither 
have  the  authors  a  private  axe  to  grind.  It 
is  written  to  give  a  clear,  simple  definition  of 
photographic  practice  in  its  primary  form,  as 
the  uninitiated  must  approach  it.  The  Primer 
can  lay  no  claim  on  the  professional  operator, 
and  goes  no  further  in  the  path  of  photographic 
work  than  the  production  of  a  perfect  picture  by 
the  simplest  processes.  For  those  who  wish  to 
experiment  with  the  endless  procession  of  new 
plates,  new  papers,  and  new  methods,  there  is 
abundant  help  ready  to  hand  in  the  photographic 
literature  of  the  past  ten  years ;  but  to  one  who 
knows  nothing  of  the  art,  who  has  never  looked 
into  the  mysterious  simplicity  of  a  camera  box, 
and  to  whom  a  lens  is  but  a  bit  of  glass,  the 
Primer  may  appeal  with  confidence. 

The  authors  have  sought  to  give  the  cardinal 
points  in  photographic  work  in  epitomic  form, 
and  in  this  respect  the  manual  may  be  found  not 
only  a  guide  to  the  beginner,  but  a  reference 
book  of  constant  use  to  the  more  advanced 
student. 


CONTENTS 
-*> 

PART  ' 

Sec.    I.    The  Apparatus   15 

Sec.  II.    The  Dry-Plate   35 

Sec.  III.    The  Developer   42 

PART  II. 

Sec.    I.    The  Exposure   53 

Skc.  II.    The  Development   68 

Sec.  III.    The  Printing   87 

PART  III. 

Sec.    I.    Mounting  135 

Sec.  II.    Preservation  140 

Sec.  III.    Enlarging  143 

ADDENDUM. 
The  Hand-Camera  :   Its  Snares  and 

Virtues  157 


PART  I 


Section  I. 


THE  APPARATUS. 


HE  Camera,  in  its  simplest  form, 
is  a  box  whose  two  ends  can  be 
made  to  approach  one  another 
at  the  will  of  the  operator.  In 
this  simple  shape  one  end  is 
firmly  secured  to  a  frame  at  the  bottom,  the 
other  end  traveling  to  and  fro,  either  in  grooves 
or  on  a  notched  metal  track,  guided  and  con- 
trolled by  a  pair  of  toothed  wheels.  As  the 
space  between  the  two  ends  is  required  to 
vary  for  every  different  picture,  a  flexible  case 
or  bellows  unites  them,  the  bellows  making 
the  box  dust-tight  and  light-tight.  One  end 
of  the  box  carries  a  panel  with  a  rabbeted 
edge,  secured  by  a  button.  The  panel  can 
be  removed  by  turning  the  button  and  slip- 
ping the  panel  out  of  the  rabbete.  This  same 
end  of  the  box,  with  its  panel  entire,  slides 
up  and  down  between  two  side  posts,  so  that 
it  may  be  raised  from  one  to  three  inches, 
and  as  the  case  or  bellows  is  secured  to  the 
back  of  this  sliding  front,  it  always  follows  the 

(15) 


i6 


The  Photographic 


movement  of  it.  The  panel  of  the  sliding 
front  has  a  circular  hole  cut  in  it. 

The  fixed,  or  opposite  end  of  the  box,  is 
made  with  a  door  the  entire  size  of  the  end. 
The  door  is  really  a  narrow  frame,  with  a 
piece  of  fine  ground  glass  set  in  it,  and  the 
door  or  ground  glass  frame  opens  in  different 
ways  in  different  makes  of  cameras.  In  some 
it  is  hinged  ;  in  others  there  is  a  side  sliding 
movement,  by  which  the  ground  glass  is  sep- 
arated from  the  back  of  the  box  so  that  a 
space  of  about  half  an  inch  is  opened,  into 
which  the  plate-holder  (to  be  described  later 
on)  may  be  slidden. 

The  grooved  or  notched  track-frame  at  the 
bottom,  on  which  the  front  of  the  box  travels, 
is  usually  hinged  back  of  the  center  of  its 
length,  so  that,  when  the  ends  are  brought 
close  together  by  the  telescoping  of  the  bel- 
lows, the  longest  part  of  this  frame  or  bed 
may  be  folded  up  against  the  front  of  the 
box,  making  the  whole  camera  compact  for 
carrying  ;  the  folding  up  has  nothing  to  do 
with  the  operation  of  the  camera.  Roughly 
speaking,  this  is  the  whole  of  a  camera  box, 
except  two  other  features  of  its  construction, 
which  will  be  noted  further  on. 

The  lens  entire  is  a  piece  of  brass  tube, 
called  the  mounting,  carrying  the  actual  lens 
or  optical  glass  which  condenses  and  projects 


Primer:  The  Apparatus, 


17 


the  picture.  The  tube  screws  into  a  brass 
plate,  which  is  firmly  secured  to  the  sliding 
front  of  the  camera  by  small  screws.  On  the 
front  of  the  tube  is  placed  a  small  cap  of 
leather,  like  the  lid  of  a  pill  box.  A  single 
lens  has  one  glass  or  lens  ;  a  double  lens  two 
glasses,  the  lens  being  held  between  two  thin 
rings  which  screw  together  in  the  tube,  form- 
ing a  round  frame  or  support.  The  position 
of  the  lens  in  the  tube  varies  according  to  the 
character  of  the  lens.  In  front  of  the  single- 
lens  glass,  and  between  the  glasses  of  the 
double  lens,  thin  metal  disks,  with  holes  of 
varying  sizes,  may  be  inserted ;  or  in  some 
lenses  the  holes  are  all  on  one  disk,  the  disk 
revolving  on  a  center,  bringing  either  hole  of 
the  series  in  turn  before  the  exact  center  of 
the  lens  glass,  at  the  will  of  the  operator. 
These  disks,  in  whatever  form  they  work,  are 
called  stops  or  diaphragms. 

The  glass  or  lens  has  many  forms,  varying 
for  special  purposes,  and  it  may  be  here  said 
that  these  variations  are  real  and  essential, 
and  that  in  the  manufacture  of  lenses  there  is 
little  opportunity  to  create  useless  forms  or  to 
produce  an  article  simply  to  sell,  for  the  lens 
is  under  the  dominion  of  strict  optical  laws. 
In  some  lenses  the  section  —  /.  e.,  if  cut 
through  the  center  of  its  thickness — shows 
flat  on  one  side  and  convex  on  the  other  ;  in 


i8 


The  Photographic 


others  there  are  two  convex  sides,  while  an- 
other variety  is  slightly  concave  on  one  side 
and  convex  on  the  other.  But  the  beginner 
had  best  not  lose  himself  in  the  mazes  of 
lens  lore. 

The  object  of  the  lens  is  to  gather  the  pic- 
ture or  view  towards  which  it  is  directed,  and 
cast  the  condensed  image  upon  the  piece  of 
ground  glass  in  the  door  at  the  back  of  the 
camera  or  box.  The  nearer  the  subject  is  to 
the  front  of  the  lens,  the  greater  the  distance 
between  the  lens  and  the  ground  glass,  and  vice 
versa.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  the  two  ends 
of  the  camera  must  be  made  to  approach  one 
another  or  to  recede  at  will.  At  almost 
any  distance  from  one  another  some  sort  of 
blurred  image  will  be  seen  on  the  ground 
glass,  but  there  is  a  right  point,  at  which  the 
image  is  presented  sharp  and  clear  in  all  its 
parts,  and  the  movable  end  must  be  operated 
backward  or  forward  until  this  clear,  clean- 
cut  picture  is  seen  on  the  ground  glass.  When 
this  condition  is  arrived  at  definition  is  secured. 
A  good  lens  should  always  make  every  part 
of  the  picture  clear  on  the  ground  glass,  not 
only  in  the  center,  but  at  the  extreme  corners ; 
it  must  not  distort  or  twist  the  square  lines 
of  any  object  which  it  casts  upon  the  ground 
glass,  and  it  must  be  of  a  focal  length  adapted 
to  the  extension  of  the  bellows  of  the  camera. 


Primer:  The  Apparatus. 


19 


Focal  length  means  simply  this,  that  when  the 
image  on  the  ground  glass  is  perfect,  some 
lenses  require  greater  distance  than  others 
between  the  front  and  back  of  the  camera  to 
produce  the  same  image  at  the  same  distance 
from  the  lens,  so  that  a  camera  which  could 
only  be  extended  eight  inches  would  not  be 
adapted  to  a  lens  whose  focal  length  was 
twelve  inches. 

The  lens,  as  has  been  said,  gathers  the  pic- 
ture and  reduces  it  to  the  size  of  the  piece  of 
ground  glass,  presenting  it  before  the  eyes  of 
the  operator  in  the  same  brilliant,  colored 
form  as  on  the  table  of  a  camera  obscura. 
Every  object  within  the  compass  of  the  lens 
is  shown  faithfully ;  if  it  is  moving,  we  see 
it  moving  on  the  plate ;  if  it  is  at  rest,  so  it  is 
shown  in  the  miniature  picture.  Shift  the 
camera  but  a  quarter  of  an  inch,  and  a  new 
section  of  view  is  presented,  so  that  to  secure 
the  image  of  one  group  of  objects  the  box  or 
camera  must  be  held  rigidly  to  one  spot.  But 
the  camera  must  needs  be  moved  to  many 
places  in  order  to  be  generally  useful,  and  a 
temporary  but  temporarily  permanent  rest  for 
it  is  required,  a  support  that  can  be  easily  car- 
ried. Three  sticks  held  the  cooking  pot  of 
the  earliest  settler  in  the  wilderness,  and  three 
sticks,  or  the  tripod,  do  duty  with  the  cam- 
era.   There  are  about  ten  thousand  kinds  of 


20 


The  Photographic 


tripods,  and  some  of  them  have  virtues.  Three 
sticks,  jointed  to  a  plate  at  the  top,  and  with 
the  bottom  ends  of  the  stick  pointed,  so 
that  each  will  hold  in  the  ground  when  spread, 
constitute  the  simplest  form.  But,  as  in  the 
instance  of  the  camera  box,  which  it  would  be 
inconvenient  to  carry  outspread,  so  a  parcel 
of  sticks  five  feet  long  would  be  in  the  road 
when  moving  from  one  place  to  another. 
The  folding  or  sliding  principle  is,  for  this 
reason,  applied  to  the  tripod,  and  some  of 
them  are  made  so  that  each  individual  stick 
slides  into  itself  twice  or  thrice,  or  is  hinged 
at  the  middle  and  folds  over,  reducing  the 
long-legged  support  to  a  small  bundle.  In 
most  of  the  tripods  the  head  can  be  detached 
and  carried  separately;  in  some  of  the  cheaper 
forms  it  remains  permanently  fixed  to  the 
group  of  legs,  and  in  others  the  camera  base 
has  the  tripod  set  into  it  as  a  part  of  the  cam- 
era itself.  Where  the  camera  and  tripod 
head  are  separate,  the  head  is  attached  by  a 
screw  or  clamp,  and  the  best  cameras  have  a 
turn-table  head,  so  that  the  camera  box  can 
be  revolved  at  will  as  upon  a  pivot,  and  yet 
remain  rigid  at  any  point.  By  spreading  or 
gathering  the  legs,  or  by  sliding  the  telesco- 
ping legs,  the  height  of  the  camera  can  be 
altered  to  suit  the  operator's  purpose. 

There  are  but  few  things  to  be  said  about  a 


Primer:  The  Apparatus. 


21 


tripod,  and  they  might  as  well  be  set  down 
here  entire.  It  must  not  be  shaky,  or  so 
lightly  made  as  to  be  easily  broken.  Conve- 
nience in  carrying  is  frequently  gained  at  a 
sacrifice  of  these  great  virtues,  and  the  after 
result  is  generally  profanity  and  bad  pictures. 
When  you  are  shown  a  tripod  in  a  store,  see 
that  it  stands  well ;  put  your  hand  on  the  top, 
with  the  legs  spread,  and  try  to  oscillate  it. 
If  it  is  in  any  way  shackly  don't  have  it ;  take 
a  heavier  one,  or  one  with  less  joints,  and 
see  that  all  these  joints  operate  easily  and  are 
held  firmly.  A  tripod  in  which  you  can 
shorten  any  one  leg  at  will,  is  generally  found 
most  serviceable.  Examine  also  the  method 
of  attaching  the  camera  box ;  it  ought  to  be 
done  quickly,  and  when  done  it  should  hold 
rigidly  and  firmly,  nor  should  these  combined 
virtues  prevent  the  easy  detachment  after 
you  are  through  with  it.  Using  reasonable 
care  on  these  points,  any  fool  ought  to  be 
able  to  select  a  good  tripod. 

With  the  camera  box  mounted  on  the  tri- 
pod, a  lens  in  its  place  on  the  front  board, 
and  pointed  towards  some  pleasant  outlook, 
take  the  cap  off  the  lens  and  try  the  move- 
ment of  the  camera  front,  shifting  it  back- 
ward or  forward  to  bring  the  picture  clear 
on  the  ground  glass.  You  at  once  experience 
a  difficulty;    you  can  see  nothing  on  the 


22 


The  Photographic 


ground  glass  !  The  light  of  the  day  on  the 
back  of  the  glass  prevents  the  reflected  image 
from  being  seen.  Your  head  and  the  glass 
must  be  shut  in  companionable  darkness,  and 
the  best  way  to  accomplish  this,  and  see  the 
picture,  is  to  throw  a  cloth  over  the  end  of 
the  camera  box  and  draw  it  closely  in  around 
your  face,  so  that  the  "  garish  day"  is  shut 
out,  meanwhile  looking  at  the  ground  glass, 
and  not  attempting  to  look  through  it.  With 
the  cloth  over  your  head,  the  only  bright  ob- 
ject for  you  is  the  picture  on  the  glass,  and  if 
you  will  remember  the  injunction  just  given, 
you  will  have  no  difficulty  in  seeing  it,  and 
must  not  be  disturbed,  when  you  do  finally 
see  the  picture  clearly,  to  find  it  upside  down. 
A  half  dozen  experiments  will  reconcile  you 
even  to  this,  without  standing  on  your  head 
or  trying  to  see  it  in  any  other  way  than 
frankly  upside  down,  and  the  humblest  adorer 
of  beauty  must  enjoy  the  miniature  picture 
even  under  such  apparent  disadvantage. 

While  your  eyes  are  coming  back  to  their 
natural  feeling  in  daylight,  it  might  be  well  to 
think  about  the  covering  you  have  over  your 
head.  The  profession  call  it  a  focusing 
cloth,  and  a  square  yard  of  rubber  cloth 
(like  a  piece  of  a  waterproof  cloak),  or  a 
piece  of  black  velvet,  is  generally  used.  The 
velvet  is  best ;  it  does  not  smother  the  opera- 


Primer:  The  Apparatus. 


23 


tor  like  the  rubber  cloth,  for  it  lets  some  air 
through,  and  when  the  wind  blows  it  is  not 
so  much  like  a  sail.  It  is  pleasanter  to  the 
face  when  it  touches  it,  clings  closer  to  the 
camera  and  the  head,  and  packs  in  with  your 
camera  much  better  than  the  more  unyielding 
rubber  cloth.  Use  a  plain,  every-day  focus- 
ing cloth  like  this  until  you  know  more,  and 
don't  experiment  with  substitutes  until  you 
have  used  some  of  your  good  money  in  mak- 
ing a  few  first-rate  pictures. 

Put  the  cloth  over  your  head  again  and 
look  at  the  ground  glass  picture.  Raise  and 
lower  the  sliding  board  which  holds  your 
lens  ;  swing  your  camera  box  on  the  tripod 
head  so  that  it  takes  in  a  different  picture  ; 
move  your  camera  front  backward  and  forward 
on  its  bed,  and  get  the  knack  of  doing  this 
evenly  and  slowly  while  your  head  is  covered. 
To  be  able  to  get  the  picture  that  you  think 
you  want  (you  will  not  learn  what  you  really 
want  for  a  month  or  two)  clear  and  sharp  on 
the  ground  glass,  and  to  be  sure  that  it  is 
sharp  and  clear,  is  enough  for  several  experi- 
ments, without  thinking  of  ' *  taking  a  picture. " 

The  back  of  the  camera  box  has  been  de- 
scribed as  having  a  door  or  frame  with  ground 
glass  in  it,  and  it  has  been  noted  that  this 
ground  glass  frame  is  either  hinged  or  has  a 
side  movement  which  will  allow  of  the  intro- 


24 


The  Photographic 


duction  of  the  plate-holder.  This  important 
feature  in  photography  consists  of  a  light 
wood  frame  of  which  a  section  looks  some- 
thing like  this:  A  deeply  recessed  groove 
on  each  out-  fK«?  er  edge  of  the  frame  re- 
ceives a  thin  slide  of  wood  fiber  or  compressed 
paper,  and  a  central  division  of  the  same  ma- 
terial separates  the  case  into  two  distinct, 
shallow  panels.  At  the  other  end  the  slides 
pass  through  the  groove,  which  here  cuts  en- 
tirely through  the  frame,  the  end  of  these 
slides  being  made  with  wood  ledges,  which 
cover  the  slit  through  which  the  slides  pass, 
so  that  when  the  slide  is  in  no  ray  of  light  can 
enter  the  slit ;  while  when  the  slide  is  with- 
drawn a  spring  flap  covered  with  felt  closes 
the  slit  as  the  slide  is  drawn  away.  When 
the  plate-holder  has  been  placed  in  the  space 
between  the  ground  glass  frame  and  the  cam- 
era box  (which  it  usually  fits  against  in  a 
rabbete),  and  the  slide  on  the  side  next  to  the 
box  removed,  the  shallow  compartment  on  that 
side  of  the  septum  is  in  the  complete  seclu- 
sion and  darkness  of  the  interior  of  the  cam- 
era box,  granting  that  the  lens  tube  is  cov- 
ered by  its  cap.  If  a  piece  of  glass  were  first 
placed  in  this  shallow  frame  of  the  plate- 
holder,  the  face  of  it  nearest  the  lens  would 
be  exactly  in  the  position  of  the  ground  glass 
which  we  have  slidden  to  one  side  or  folded. 


Primer:  The  Apparatus. 


25 


When  the  holder  is  not  in  the  camera,  and 
the  slide  is  closed  or  pushed  in,  the  piece  of 
glass  is  in  a  flat  compartment,  light-proof 
and  dust-proof.  As  the  piece  of  glass  can 
occupy  the  same  place  as  the  ground  glass, 
it  follows  that  the  picture  cast  on  the  latter 
would  be  cast  on  the  glass  when  the  slide  is 
drawn,  and  it  is  thus  that  the  image  we  have 
seen  on  the  ground  glass  is  cast  upon  the 
sensitive  plate,  which  we  will  place  in  the 
holder  later  on.  For  the  present  we  will  ex- 
periment with  a  piece  of  glass  of  the  size  of 
the  plates  adapted  to  the  camera — 3^  x  4^, 
4x5,  5x7,  or  whatever  it  be.  To  put  these 
pieces  of  innocent,  plain  glass  in  the  plate- 
holder  in  broad  daylight  is  simple  enough. 
The  slides  are  removed  from  both  sides  of  the 
holder.  At  one  end,  the  opposite  from  which 
the  slide  enters,  a  piece  of  flat  brass  bow- 
spring  receives  the  end  of  the  glass  and 
allows  it  to  be  pushed  down  until  the  glass 
drops  against  the  septum  or  middle  division, 
and  the  opposite  end  is  held  under  a  little 
ledge,  being  thrown  back  there  by  the  spring 
at  the  end  first  inserted.  When  this  opera- 
tion is  completed  with  both  sides,  and  the 
slides  are  snugly  pushed  in,  there  are  two 
pieces  of  glass  resting  in  seclusion.  All  plate- 
holders  do  not  have  exactly  the  same  arrange- 
ment for  holding  the  glass,  putting  it  in  and 


26 


The  Photographic 


removing  it ;  but  every  plate-holder  ought  to 
be  simple  enough  to  be  easily  handled  in  the 
dark.  For  after  you  have  examined  your 
holders  well,  and  tried  at  putting  the  plain 
glass  plates  in  them  in  the  light,  you  will 
henceforth  have  to  meet  them  only  in  the  dull 
obscurity  of  the  dark  room,  and  for  that  mat- 
ter you  will  be  well  off  if  you  learn  to 
handle  them  while  shut  up  in  a  dark  closet, 
with  all  the  lamps  or  lights  in  the  house  ex- 
tinguished and  a  dark  night  outside  !  Deeds 
of  darkness  abound  in  careful  photography, 
and  any  kind  of  light,  save  ruby  or  orange, 
has  a  skittish  way  of  treating  your  plates,  so 
that  by  all  practicable  handling  in  the  dark 
you  gain  greater  security. 

A  good  plate-holder  has  these  virtues :  It 
is  as  small  as  possible,  and  as  light  as  possible 
consistent  with  reasonable  strength ;  it  re- 
ceives a  plate  easily  and  comfortably,  and 
yields  it  up  as  quietly  by  sense  of  touch  ; 
while  it  ought  not  to  be  exposed  in  broad  sun- 
light, it  ought  to  be  so  tight  that  you  could 
do  so  with  impunity  ;  the  slides  should  fit 
tightly  and  draw  freely,  and  there  ought  to 
be  some  device  to  prevent  Mr.  Careless  from 
pulling  them  out  when  they  happen  to  be  in 
a  public  position.  Finally  as  to  plate-holders 
just  here,  every  slide  of  every  plate-holder 
ought  to  have  a  record  tablet  of  celluloid  on 


Primer:  The  Apparatus. 


27 


the  end  from  which  it  is  drawn,  and  this 
tablet  should  be  big  enough  to  let  you  write 
in  pencil,  in  modest  size,  the  kind  of  plate, 
the  date  it  was  put  in  the  holder,  the  subject, 
date  and  time  of  exposure,  and  the  number  of 
the  stop  or  diaphragm  used.  All  this  amounts 
to  but  a  few  words,  but  such  a  record,  which 
you  can  transfer  to  your  house  record  if  you 
wish  to,  but  which  at  least  tells  you  all  about 
the  plate  and  the  holder  until  you  want  to 
develop  the  negative,  is  valuable,  and  saves 
the  wastage  on  plates.  Every  man  who  has 
carried  a  camera  has  probably,  at  one  time 
or  another,  filled  his  plate-holders  with  care, 
made  a  mental  register  of  their  contents, 
arranged  them  in  his  camera  case  in  a  certain 
order,  and  ten  days  afterward,  having  been 
prevented  from  using  them,  found  that  he  was 
unable  to  tell  whether  No.  1  was  slow  or 
No.  2  fast — sometimes  so  badly  off  as  not  to 
know  whether  a  plate  had  been  used  ! 

This  record  system  is  much  more  satisfac- 
tory than  the  usual  note-book.  Neatly  printed 
and  arranged  note-books  are  for  sale  every- 
where, but  who  uses  them  ?  They  are  un- 
practical unless  the  photographer  be  a  man 
of  immense  resource  in  patience  and  care,  for 
the  note-book  is  but  another  impediment  to 
action.  Unless  he  ties  it  to  his  camera,  it 
will  generally  be  left  in  the  dark-room,  and  if 


28 


The  Photographic 


he  wants  to  make  a  memorandum  in  the  field, 
the  photographer  finds  a  card  or  envelope 
back  his  only  resource.  With  the  plate-holder 
tablet,  the  record  and  the  plate  are  together 
until  he  reaches  the  place  or  time  for  devel- 
opment, and  it  can  then  be  put  into  a  per- 
manent note-book,  if  such  a  proceeding  is 
desirable. 

The  few  items  mentioned  thus  far  consti- 
tute the  entire  equipment  for  an  amateur,  so 
far  as  mechanical  apparatus  goes,  necessary 
to  produce  a  negative.  Everything  except 
the  tripod  should  stow  compactly  and  neatly 
into  a  light  canvas-covered  case,  and  there 
are  cases  which  hold  the  tripod  as  well. 

It  is  difficult  to  advise  as  to  the  selection  of 
a  camera.  There  are  many  good  makes,  and 
the  scale  of  cost  is  applicable  to  almost  every 
size  pocket-book.  The  surest  way  to  get  a 
good  article  is  to  go  to  a  maker  whose  wares 
are  well  established,  and  who  gives  no  sign  of 
quitting  business.  The  wood  of  the  box 
ought  to  be  well  seasoned  and  finished ;  it 
ought  to  be  put  together  so  that  strength  and 
lightness  are  marked  features,  and  the  metal 
work  well  polished.  The  difference  in  a 
pound  or  two  of  lessened  weight  is  marked 
when  one  has  to  carry  the  instrument  for 
many  miles,  although  it  does  not  seem  to  be 
so  essential  while  simply  handling  the  article 


Primer:  The  Apparatus, 


29 


in  the  store.  The  bellows  in  the  cheaper 
grade  of  cameras  is  often  untrustworthy,  and 
cracks  and  rots  at  an  early  day,  so  that  surety 
as  to  its  quality  is  an  important  consideration. 
For  the  amateur  who  does  not  know  how  far 
he  will  carry  his  photographic  experiments,  it 
is  a  safe  course  to  buy  a  small  camera  at  first. 
The  main  reasons  are  three  :  The  expense  is 
less,  a  good  4x5  camera  is  better  than  a  me- 
dium 5x8,  and  the  cost  of  plates,  one  of  the 
greatest  items  in  the  pursuit,  is  restricted.  If 
the  student  finds  photography  pleasing,  he 
can  at  a  later  day  exchange  or  sell  his  small 
camera  and  secure  a  larger  one  on  fair  terms 
(for the  manufacturer!),  and  the  experience  he 
has  already  gained  will  make  the  selection  of 
the  second  camera  more  satisfactory,  for  by 
that  time  he  will  know  the  kind  of  work  he 
likes  best,  and  the  second  choice  can  be  made 
in  the  light  of  this  knowledge.  Again,  the 
handling  of  large  plates  in  development  is  a 
serious  drawback  to  the  beginner,  and  the 
possible  misadventures  with  them  can  very 
soon  lessen  his  enjoyment  and  his  bank  ac- 
count. 

Do  not  buy  a  "  complete  outfit!"  Buy 
what  you  want ;  or  rather,  what  is  made  to  do 
the  kind  of  work  you  think  you  want  to  do. 
The  articles  can  be  selected  separately,  ac- 
cording to  the  list  given  at  the  end  of  this 


3o 


77?^  Photographic 


chapter.  Your  inclination  will  soon  seek  to 
make  you  add  to  it,  and  with  care  you  can,  of 
course,  select  many  things  which  will  be  of 
advantage  to  you,  but  which  are  not  spoken 
of  here,  but  do  not  buy  anything  more  than 
we  recommend  to  commence  with ;  for  the 
authors  feel  sure  that  the  hour  of  gratitude 
for  this  advice  will  not  be  lacking. 

5(C  *  ;fC  *  *  * 

The  apparatus  for  the  indoor  work  is  but 
a  small  affair.  Trays  for  development  are 
needed.  Unquestionably  the  hard  rubber  are 
best,  since  they  combine  lightness,  cleanli- 
ness and  strength.  You  can  let  them  fall  with 
impunity,  although  there  is  no  occasion  for 
letting  them  fall  at  all.  The  trays  should  be 
of  a  size  to  receive  two  plates,  not  because 
you  want  to  develop  two  at  once,  but  for  rea- 
sons shown  later  on.  The  trays  are  about 
an  inch  or  so  deep,  and  one  corner  should 
have  a  lip  for  pouring  solutions  from  them. 
For  measuring  the  solutions  you  ought  to 
have  two  graduated  glasses,  one  holding  four 
ounces,  fluid  measure,  and  the  other  eight 
ounces.  If  you  can  get  the  graduates  with 
the  scale  in  white  enamel  they  will  be  handier, 
and  you  will  bless  them  in  your  dark  room. 
For  holding  the  solutions,  a  half  dozen  glass- 
stoppered  bottles  of  from  5  to  20  ounces 


Primer:  The  Apparatus. 


31 


capacity  are  needful.  These  bottles  may  be 
empty  cologne  water  bottles,  or  any  bottles 
which  have  not  been  used  for  fluids  which 
may  have  left  some  remnant  behind.  If  you 
use  old  bottles,  be  careful  about  this,  and  as  a 
precaution  for  even  the  cleanly  cologne  water 
bottles,  wash  them  by  filling  with  a  moder- 
ately strong  solution  of  citric  acid,  warm,  al- 
lowing the  solution  to  remain  in  the  bottle 
for  half  an  hour  and  briskly  agitating  it. 

The  light  to  develop  your  pictures  by  in  the 
dark-room  is  as  serious  a  matter  as  your  cam- 
era. Lamps  for  the  purpose  are  sold — all 
kinds.  They  are  mostly  frauds.  What  you 
want  is  to  get  a  good  light  of  a  deep  orange- 
ruby  tone,  the  strength  of  it  being  sufficient 
to  see  everything  clearly  in  the  dark-room. 
If  your  surroundings  afford  an  opportunity  to 
put  an  ordinary  light,  lamp  or  gas,  in  a  room 
next  to  your  dark-room,  and  you  can  have  a 
12x12  inch  sheet  of  orange  and  ruby  glass  in 
a  small  aperture,  otherwise  light-tight,  be- 
tween the  two  rooms,  you  will  have  as  nearly 
an  ideal  condition  as  you  can  expect ;  or  if 
you  develop  in  daylight,  the  12x12  light  can 
be  in  a  screen  used  to  entirely  cover  the  out- 
side window,  in  which  case  it  will  be  neces- 
sary to  dim  the  strong  daylight  still  further  by 
putting  a  sheet  of  yellow  "  post-office  "  paper 
between  the  two  glasses.    But  if  you  must 


32 


The  Photographic 


use  a  lamp,  be  sure  that  the  one  you  buy  is 
light-tight,  except  where  the  light  comes 
through  the  colored  glass,  and  if  it  has  an  oil 
burner  take  it  out  as  soon  as  you  get  homey  using 
thereafter  a  good  candle  in  its  place.  The 
developing  room  is  almost  always  too  warm, 
and  you  do  not  need  a  cook-stove  in  it;  most 
of  the  lamps  sold  are  cook-stoves,  and  in  many 
of  them  the  oil  becomes  so  quickly  overheated 
as  to  be  really  dangerous.  There  is  one  lamp 
made,  we  believe,  in  which  the  oil  burner  can 
be  used ;  it  is  a  thoroughly  good  one,  but  Mr. 
Carbutt's  price  for  it  is  in  excess  of  what  the 
tyro  in  photography  should  expend  at  the  out- 
start,  although  not  beyond  its  worth.  The 
problem  of  light  is  made  simple  if  one  can 
command  an  incandescent  electric  bulb  and 
stick  it  in  his  lantern. 

Two  more  pieces  of  furniture  complete  the 
apparatus :  a  drying  rack  for  plates — a  very 
simple  wooden  rack,  in  which  each  plate  can 
have  a  groove  to  stand  in,  with  one  corner 
pointed  downward,  to  drain  and  dry — and  a 
printing-frame,  to  use  hereafter  when  the  time 
comes.  Neither  article  has  any  particular 
points,  and  your  purchase,  so  far  as  these  go, 
can  be  made  with  blind  confidence  in  the 
dealer. 

The  list  of  necessities,  then  (outside  of 
chemicals  and  a  few  minor  trifles  to  be  men- 


Primer:  The  Apparatus. 


33 


tioned),  for  all  your  work,  from  the  field  to  the 
completed,  mounted  picture,  is  as  follows  : 

A  Camera. 

(The  Camera  comprises  the  bellows-box  affair 
which  you  have  often  seen  in  the  windows.  With 
it  alone  you  cannot  make  pictures  any  more  than 
you  can  with  a  clock-case. ) 

The  Lens. 

(Comprising  the  mounting  or  tube,  with  the  lens 
glass  or  glasses,  the  stops  or  diaphragms,  the 
leather  cap,  and  the  base-plate  to  secure  it  to  the 
Camera.  There  are  many  classes  of  lenses,  and 
you  can  scarcely  do  all  kinds  of  photography 
with  one  lens.  But  you  do  not  want  to  do  all 
kinds  to  commence  with,  and  you  can  learn  a 
little  more  about  the  matter  in  the  chapter  de- 
voted to  Exposure. ) 

The  Tripod. 

(About  which  enough  has  been  said. ) 

The  Plate-Holders. 

(Three  double  plate-holders — double  means 
holding  two  plates — are  sufficient  for  you  now. 
The  six  plates  which  they  will  hold  will  be  enough 
for  you  to  spoil  in  one  day.  Plate-holders  are 
like  extra  collars  and  cuffs :  you  can  buy  them 
when  you  want  them,  one  or  a  dozen  at  a  time.) 

The  Focusing  Cloth. 

(Don't  forget  to  select  a  velvet  or  velveteen 
one ;  a  piece  of  velvet  a  yard  square,  from  an 
old  dress,  or  from  any  store,  is  all  it  means ; 
there  is  no  magic  in  it. ) 

The  Rubber  Trays. 

(For  developing.  Three  of  these  are  necessary 
for  the  negative  development  and  three  for  the 
print  development. ) 

The  Graduates. 

(If  the  base  is  broad  and  they  sit  well,  the  two 
glasses  will  be  all  right. ) 

The  Bottles. 


34 


The  Photographic  Primer, 


The  Lantern. 
The  Drying-Rack. 
The  Printing-Frame. 

Go  to  an  honest  store  for  these  things,  and 
neither  seek  to  show  the  dealer  that  you  are 
a  master  in  photography  or  forget  yourself  so 
far  as  to  betray  that  you  are  grossly  ignorant, 
and  so  God  be  with  you  ! 


Section  II. 


THE  DRY-PLATE. 


■ 


HE  modern  dry-plate  has  yet  to 
be  superseded  by  a  new  wonder 
in  the  same  family.  It  is  one  of 
the  simplest  yet  most  mysterious 


affairs  in  the  world,  and  its  life  commenced  so 
recently  that  a  man  can  claim  to  have  been 
born  before  it  and  yet  not  assume  the  airs  of 
a  patriarch.  To-day  dozens  of  factories  are 
turning  out  hundreds  of  boxes  of  dry-plates 
every  twenty-four  hours. 

A  box,  in  the  ordinary  smaller  sizes,  con- 
tains one  dozen  plates,  each  quarter  or  half 
dozen  plates  wrapped  in  a  double  black  or  dark 
paper,  and  the  individual  plates  usually  sep- 
arated by  a  narrow  card  strip  at  the  edge,  or 
in  some  other  fashion.  The  dozen  plates  are 
packed  in  a  stout  pasteboard  box  and  sealed 
up  with  edge  wrappers,  or  wrappers  covering 
the  entire  box.  On  almost  all  the  boxes  will 
be  found  the  injunction  to  keep  in  a  dry  place, 
stand  on  edge  and  open  only  in  a  safe  light. 
If  they  are  kept  in  a  damp  place  the  moisture 


(35) 


36 


The  Photographic 


will  invade  even  the  careful  packing  and 
cause  deterioration  ;  if  they  are  laid  flat  and 
box  piled  on  box,  or  something  else  piled  on 
them,  the  chance  friction  or  pressure  may 
cause  them  to  rub  or  the  glass  to  break  ;  and 
finally,  if  even  the  slowest  grade  receives  any 
white  light — day-light,  lamp-light,  electric- 
light  or  candle-light — you  can  throw  the  box 
into  the  dust  heap,  for  you  have  only  a  dozen 
bits  of  glass  4x5,  5x7,  or  as  the  case  may 
be  :  the  magic  has  all  departed.  When  these 
plates  go  into  the  boxes  they  are  destined  to 
have  their  first  glimpse  of  daylight  only  as 
prisoners  in  the  plate-holders  of  a  camera. 

If  we  could  take  one  of  the  plates  out  of  the 
box  and  carry  it  to  the  broad  light  of  the  win- 
dow without  injury,  we  would  find  a  piece  of 
glass  of  the  size  designated  on  the  outside  of 
the  package,  and  covered  on  one  side  with  a 
smooth,  rich,  cream-colored  substance,  so 
even  that  its  translucent  effect  is  like  that  of 
a  piece  of  carefully  tinted  glass.  This  coat- 
ing is  the  thing  the  light  will  ruin,  and  it  is 
the  medium  for  producing  the  negative  which, 
in  turn,  produces  what  we  ordinarily  call  a 
photograph.  The  process  by  which  the  plate 
is  coated  is  an  interesting  one,  but  is  not  to  be 
described  in  detail  in  this  book.  The  coating 
is  composed  of  Bromide  and  Iodide  of  Potas- 
sium, Nitrate  of  Silver  and  Gelatine,  in  cer- 


Primer:   The  Dry- Plate. 


37 


tain  proportions.  The  union  of  these  chemi- 
cals produces  an  insoluble  compound,  in  a 
fine  state  of  division,  held  in  suspension  in 
the  gelatine,  which,  before  it  is  used  for  coat- 
ing the  plates,  is  boiled  and  then  washed  until 
the  by-products  of  the  combination  are  largely 
eliminated.  The  extent  of  the  "cooking" 
governs  the  sensitiveness  of  the  film,  and, 
consequently,  the  activity  of  the  plate  when 
under  exposure,  so  that  very  fast  plates  are 
"well-done"  and  slow  plates  "rare,"  if  we 
apply  cook-book  language  to  the  matter. 

The  light,  coming  in  contact  with  this  coat- 
ing, oxidizes  the  salts  of  silver  and  blackens 
it,  and  this  change  is  developed  or  brought 
out  by  the  developer.  The  light  does  not 
produce  any  visible  effect  on  the  plate,  al- 
though if  kept  long  enough  in  the  light  it  be- 
comes overcast  with  a  bluish  tinge.  Contact 
with  a  developing  fluid  at  once  causes  the  ox- 
idized sections  to  blacken  in  gradation  as  the 
intensity  of  the  light  in  the  view  has  fallen  on 
the  plate,  while  the  dark  or  black  tones  in  the 
view  simply  leave  the  emulsion  with  which 
the  plate  is  covered  unattacked  in  those  par- 
ticular places,  and  consequently  they  appear 
as  clear  or  nearly  clear  glass  after  develop- 
ment. All  of  the  wonderful  delicacy  and  the 
merging  of  the  delicate  degrees  of  light  and 
shade  in  nature  are  thus  reproduced  simply  by 


38 


The  Photographic 


a  chemical  agent  bringing  them  to  one  com- 
mon ground  of  degrees  of  darkness.  If  you 
take  a  sheet  of  clear  glass  and  flow  some  draw- 
ing ink  on  its  surface  with  a  brush,  you  will 
have  a  greyish  black  translucent  spot.  Flow 
another  spot,  allow  it  to  dry,  and  give  it  a  sec- 
ond coat,  and  then  another  spot  in  which  you 
repeat  the  flowing  operation  the  third  time. 
There  will  then  be  on  the  glass,  when  held  to 
the  light,  three  distinct  shades  of  blackness, 
the  first  letting  some  light  through,  the  sec- 
ond less  light,  and  the  third  perhaps  none. 
This  piece  of  glass  serves  to  roughly  illustrate 
the  whole  nature  of  the  negative — the  name 
given  to  a  photographic  plate  after  exposure 
in  the  camera  and  development.  The  nega- 
tive is  simply  a  reverse  image  of  the  light  and 
shade  values  in  the  outlook  the  lens  of  the 
camera  has  been  pointed  at,  these  same  val- 
ues, however,  being  so  delicately  graded  and 
reproduced  as  to  far  surpass  the  brush  of  any 
artist.  To  describe  further  the  exact  chemi- 
cal action  of  the  image  of  light  on  the  sensi- 
tized plate  does  not  seem  to  be  necessary  in 
this  book. 

As  has  been  stated,  the  riper  or  the  more 
prolonged  the  amalgamation  of  the  chemical 
constituents  of  the  coating,  the  more  sensi- 
tive the  plate,  and  the  more  sensitive  the  more 
rapid.    Plates  are  made,  generally  speaking, 


Primer:  The  Dry -Plate. 


39 


in  three  distinct  grades  :  Very  slow,  for  the 
purpose  of  photographing  drawings,  pictures 
and  still-life;  medium,  for  landscapes,  archi- 
tectural work,  etc.,  and  rapid,  for  moving  ob- 
jects, portraiture  and  general  work,  while  we 
might  say  that  there  is  a  fourth  distinct  class, 
the  very  rapid,  whose  exposure  cannot  be 
measured  by  the  human  sense.  The  two  ex- 
tremes are  the  most  difficult  for  the  amateur 
to  work,  and  until  he  becomes  well  advanced 
in  his  experiments  he  had  best  leave  them 
alone,  unless  he  wishes  to  contribute  to  the 
support  of  the  plate  makers.  The  very  slow 
plates  require  skill  in  timing  and  development, 
and  the  very  fast  require  a  good  1  *  snap  shut- 
ter, "  which  will  cost  nearly  as  much  as  the 
camera. 

All  of  these  plates  are'graded  to  the  reading 
of  what  is  called  a  "  sensitometer,"  and  the 
package  is  marked  "Sens.  No.  — ,"  with  the 
grade  mark  used  by  the  manufacturer  to  des- 
ignate the  particular  quality  or  speed. 

It  is  a  wise  course — and  you  will  find  this 
threadbare  statement  in  every  photographic 
book,  big  or  little — it  is  a  wise  course  to  cling 
to  one  brand  or  make  of  plate  and  learn  its 
qualities.  There  are  a  half  dozen  makes  on 
the  market  which  are  all  the  best  for  some  one, 
for  the  character  of  the  plate  is  like  the  char- 
acter of  a  friend,  it  comes  out  more  and  more 


4o 


The  Photographic 


thoroughly  by  cont'nuous  acquaintance.  It  is 
always  a  mistake  for  a  beginner  to  buy  a  box 
of  Cramer's  plates,  then  a  box  of  Seed's,  and 
again  a  box  of  Carbutt's,  for  each  make  will 
have  a  subtle  difference,  and  the  results  are 
likely  to  be  uneven  when  this  changeable 
method  is  followed.  All  of  these  plates  are 
good,  and  if  the  first  dozen  plates  you  use  are 
unsuccessful,  blame  it  on  yourself.  Try  a 
second  dozen,  and  think  where  you  may  have 
erred.  If  the  second  dozen  all  fail  you,  try  a 
third;  but  there — unless  you  are  an  unmitiga- 
ble  blockhead,  in  which  event  you  will  never 
make  a  negative  with  any  plate — there  you 
may  stop,  and  conclude  that  something  is 
wrong  with  the  plates.  If  there  is  something 
wrong,  any  reliable  maker  will  see  that  you 
have  justice,  but  it  must  be  a  very  rare  oc- 
currence for  a  man  to  use  two  dozen  plates 
without  getting  some  good  results,  and  they 
do  not  need  to  be  all  good  to  assure  you  that 
the  plates  are  not  at  fault. 

The  dry-plate,  from  the  moment  it  leaves 
its  wrapper  until  the  end  of  its  life,  which 
ought  only  to  be  when  some  unkind  fate 
breaks  the  glass,  should  be  handled  with  re- 
spect and  care.  Treated  thus  it  will  give 
prompt  response  and  yield  you  generous  re- 
turn. One-half  the  bad  pictures  are  caused 
by  careless  handling  of  the  plate  at  some  time 


Primer:  The  Dry- Plate. 


41 


in  its  life.  Remember  that  its  coating  is  not 
only  affected  by  light,  but  that  it  cannot  be 
rubbed,  scratched,  or  brought  in  contact  with 
heat  without  suffering  or  being  ruined.  Prac- 
tically the  coated  face  ought  never  to  be 
touched  by  anything  until  it  meets  the  devel- 
oper, although  experience  will  teach  the  lati- 
tude in  these  matters.  But  the  best  way  to 
start  out  is  to  make  up  your  mind  that  it  shall 
not  be  touched  by  anything,  and  the  degree 
of  latitude  in  handling  will  grow  upon  you  as 
you  learn. 

Finally,  treat  the  wrapper  of  your  box  of 
plates  as  sacredly  as  the  seal  of  some  one 
else's  letter,  until  you  are  in  your  dark-room, 
and  then  you  may  open  it  if  you  intend  to 
quickly  shift  the  plates  to  your  plate-holders. 
Don't  open  the  box  to  look  at  the  plates  ;  it 
will  do  you  no  good,  and  there  is  every  chance 
that  it  will  do  the  plates  harm  ;  very  fast 
plates  ought  to  be  handled  only  in  the  dark 
until  the  moment  comes  for  them  to  enter  the 
developing  tray. 


Section  III. 


THE  DEI/ELOPER. 


HEN  in  the  dark-room  the  dry- 
plate  is  taken  from  the  plate- 
holder  of  the  camera,  after  ex- 
I  posure,  no  apparent  change,  as 
we  have  said,  can  be  noted. 
The  same  cream-like  hue  extends  over  its 
surface,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  it  has 
been  born  to  new  life  in  the  camera,  and 
only  awaits  an  active  agent  to  make  that 
new  life  visible. 

The  silver  salts  of  the  emulsion  coating 
have  been  oxidized  by  the  light.  The  devel- 
oper sets  its  seal  on  the  work  and  by  its  chem- 
ical action  completes  the  process,  causing 
these  oxidized  spots  to  become  black  with 
more  or  less  intensity,  according  to  the 
strength  of  light  in  the  image  which  the  lens 
has  cast  upon  the  plate.  The  plate,  before 
it  touches  this  active  fluid,  can  be  said  to  have 
no  character;  the  developer  brings  out  or  de- 
velops all  the  character  which  the  lens  image 
has  left  there. 


(42) 


The  Developer. 


43 


The  developing  agents  have  increased  in 
number  to  a  remarkable  extent,  and  in  place 
of  a  half  dozen  orthodox  solutions,  we  have 
to-day  every  variety  in  kind  and  action. 
To  the  professional  photographer  these  are 
of  constant  use,  since,  used  in  combination 
with  his  experience,  the  results  are  made  to 
vary  to  suit  his  special  need.  Experiments 
with  many  kinds  of  developer  are  traps  for 
the  amateur  in  his  early  days,  leading  him 
into  the  same  sort  of  scrapes  as  the  promis- 
cuous wandering  in  the  field  of  dry-plates. 
A  developer,  and  its  action  on  the  plate, 
needs  to  be  studied  in  the  same  fashion  as 
the  plate  itself,  and  to  do  this  properly  the 
developer  ought  to  be  used  continuously. 
At  the  beginning  it  is  wiser  for  the  student 
to  limit  the  kind  of  pictures  for  awhile,  and 
not  try  to  take  portraits,  landscapes,  still-life, 
etc.,  until  he  has  learned  to  take  one  kind  of 
pictures  well.  The  range  is  very  much  easier 
afterward,  and  by  thus  limiting  the  kind  of 
subject  he  can  limit  the  character  of  his  de- 
veloper. In  a  short  time  he  will  know  Pyro 
or  Oxalate  or  Hydro  in  all  their  shades  of 
feeling,  and  then,  if  adventurous,  can  go  out 
on  the  vast  and  increasing  sea  of  develop- 
ing solutions. 

The  following  formulae  have  been  selected 
with  care,  and  are  given  here  under  their 


44 


The  Photographic 


proper  heading  in  the  book,  although  the 
beginner  will  find  them  more  interesting  after 
he  has  completed  the  reading  of  Section  II., 
in  Part  II.,  on  Development.  Each  developer 
has  a  number  attached  to  it,  purely  for  con- 
venience in  referring  to  it  later  on. 

No.  i.    Hydroquinone  Developer. 

'  Hydroquinone   18  grains 

Sulphite  of  Soda  (crystals)  .  .  100  grains 


Citric  Acid   6  grains 

Bromide  of  Potassium   ....  3  grains 

Distilled  Water   2  ounces 

Caustic  Soda   18  grains 

Distilled  Water   2  ounces 


Use  A  and  B  in  equal  parts  when  making 
ready  for  development. 

No.  2.    Pyrogallic  Acid  Developer. 

*  f  Sulphite  of  Soda  (crystals)  .  .  iy2  ounces 
\  Water  4  ounces 

t>  f  Carbonate  of  Soda  1%  ounces 

\  Water  4  ounces 

C    Saturated  Solution  Bromide  of  Ammonium 

Keep  the  above  as  stock  solutions,  in  sepa- 
rate bottles,  and  when  ready  to  develop  take 

Water  4  ounces 

Pyrogallic  Acid  25  grains 

A  1  ounce 

B  1%  drachms 

C  2  drops 

Weigh  out  the  dry  Pyro  (Schering's  re-sub- 
limed Pyrogallic  Acid  is  best),  and  dissolve 
in  the  water;  then  add  the  other  ingredients. 
Never  use  Pyro  developer  except  fresh,  if  you 


Primer:  The  Developer. 


45 


desire  good  results.  Thus  used  this  developer 
works  finely,  and  will  never  stain. 

Should  you  have  a  negative  stained  by  Pyro, 
the  stain  may  be  removed  by  soaking  in 

Sulphate  of  Iron  i}4  ounces 

Water  %  pint 

Sulphuric  Acid  (c.  p.)  i  drachm 

Alum  }i  ounce 

No.  3.    Pyrogallic  Acid  Developer. 

(As  successfully  used  by  Dr.  Jesse  C.  Millen.) 

Each  fluid  ounce  of  the  developer  contains 

Water  1  ounce 

Carbonate  of  Soda  10  grains 

Sulphite  of  Soda  (crystals)  ....  20  grains 

Pyrogallic  Acid  2  grains 

Bromide  of  Potassium  1  grain 

The  Pyro  is  always  to  be  kept  dry,  weigh- 
ing it  out  and  dissolving  it  in  the  water  of 
the  formula  when  ready  to  use.  The  other 
ingredients  may  be  made  into  stock  solutions 
by  dissolving  larger  quantities  in  water  in 
separate  bottles  in  the  proportions  given 
above.  (For  instance,  an  8-oz.  stock  solution 
of  the  Carbonate  of  Soda  would  be  made  by 
taking  8  ounces  of  water  and  dissolving  in 
it  160  grains  of  the  Soda,  so  that  each  half 
ounce  of  the  fluid  would  have  10  grains  of 
soda,  and  making  the  Sulphite  of  Soda  solu- 
tion in  the  same  way  would  give  each  half 
ounce  of  it  20  grains  of  the  Sulphite.  The 
united  two  half  ounces  would  then  make  one 
fluid  ounce  containing  10  grains  of  the  Car- 


46 


The  Photographic 


bonate,  and  20  of  the  Sulphite. )  For  each 
ounce  there  can  then  be  added  2  grains  of 
the  dry  Pyro,  and  1  grain  of  the  Bromide. 

When  fresh,  this  developer  works  clear 
and  bright,  and  does  not  stain.  When  the 
exposure  is  anywhere  near  the  right  time, 
the  resulting  negatives  are  fine  and  spark- 
ling. 

No.  4.     Pyro-Ammonia  Developer. 


Pyrogallic  Acid  8  grains 

Bromide  of  Potassium  8  grains 

Ammonia  (strong)  8  drops 

Water  4  ounces 


For  under-exposed  plates  and  snap-shots, 
this  is  one  of  the  best  developers  ever  formu- 
lated. It  does  not  fog  the  negative,  but  gives 
it  a  brilliant  quality,  full  of  detail.  It  does 
stain  both  the  negative  and  the  fingers,  but 
this  interferes  with  the  final  result  only  in 
making  the  printing  very  slow. 

No.  5.     Metol  Developer. 

(As  successfully  used  by  Mr.  J.  L.  Dillon.) 


(  Metol  1  ounce 

A  \  Water  60  ounces 

(  Sulphite  of  Soda  (crystals)    .  .  8  ounces 

r>  j  Carbonate  of  Soda  8  ounces 

(  Water  60  ounces 

c  j  Bromide  of  Potassium  8  ounces 

(  Water  16  ounces 


In  using  take  equal  quantities  of  A  and  B, 
and  if  the  development  proceeds  too  quickly, 


Primer:  The  Developer. 


47 


use  a  quarter  to  a  half  ounce  of  C  to  each  8 
ounces  of  the  developer. 

The  keeping  qualities  of  this  developer  are 
excellent,  and  it  does  not  stain  either  the 
hands  or  plate.  In  combination  with  the 
Acid  Fixing-Bath,  it  makes  an  ever-ready 
developing  and  fixing  outfit.  The  old  solu- 
tion can  be  used  for  over-exposures,  the  fresh 
for  normal  exposures. 

No.  6.    Metol-Quinol  Developer. 


Warm  Water  27  ounces 

Metol  15  grains 

Sulphite  of  Soda  (crystals)  .  .      \x/z  ounces 

Hydroquinone  1  drachm 

Bromide  of  Potassium  4  grains 

Carbonate  of  Potassium  ....   5  drachms 

No.  7.    Iron  Oxalate  Developer. 

(Neutral  Oxalate  of  Potash  ...  16  ounces 
Hot  Water  48  ounces 
Acetic  Acid  3  drachms 

{Proto-Sulphate  of  Iron  16  ounces 
Hot  Water  32  ounces 
Citric  Acid   %  ounce 

~  f  Bromide  of  Potassium   x/z  ounce 

\  Water  1  pint 


Let  both  solutions  cool  off  before  use. 
They  will  keep  for  months  in  separate  bot- 
tles. The  iron  (B)  solution  should  be  well 
stoppered,  and  rejected  if  not  perfectly  clear 
and  green.  Exposing  in  sunlight  occasionally 
will  keep  it  in  good  condition. 

To  use,  take  6  ounces  of  A,  1  ounce  of  B, 
and   yi   drachm  of  C,  mixing  them  in  the 


48 


The  Photographic 


order  given.  Under  no  circumstance  must 
A  be  poured  into  B.  As  a  general  caution, 
be  careful  to  avoid  the  contamination  of  your 
Iron  Developer  with  Pyro. 

Rodinal  is  an  extremely  simple  and  safe 
developer  for  the  beginner.  It  is  put  up  and 
sold  in  one  solution,  simply  requiring  dilu- 
tion with  water  to  be  ready  for  use.  The 
results  are  clear  and  brilliant,  and  sure  to 
give  satisfaction. 

To  briefly  review  the  various  developers 
we  have  mentioned :  No.  i,  Hydroquinone, 
gives  very  satisfactory  plates,  and  is  extremely 
clean  for  the  amateur  to  handle.  It  also  has 
the  virtue  of  being  in  one  solution,  and  thus 
helps  towards  simplicity.  The  plates  devel- 
oped with  it  are  hard  and  sharp,  generally 
speaking,  and  it  suggests  itself  as  an  excellent 
solution  to  use  on  negatives  of  line  drawings, 
or  any  work  requiring  sharp  definition,  rather 
than  soft  effects.  Skillfully  handled,  it  can, 
of  course,  be  used  on  almost  every  variety  of 
exposure. 

The  developers  Nos.  2,  3  and  4  represent 
the  Pyro  group,  or  those  into  which  Pyro- 
gallic  Acid  enters  as  an  active  agent,  and  the 
memoranda  already  given  are  sufficient  to 
show  the  range  of  their  work.  Nos.  5  and  6, 
the  Metol  and  Metol-Quinol  developers,  rep- 
resent two  reliable  formulae  for  this  very  use- 


Primer:  The  Developer, 


49 


ful  agent  (Metol).  The  keeping  qualities  of 
Metol  are  remarkable.  It  is  clean,  both  in 
connection  with  the  plates  and  hands  ;  its  ra- 
pidity and  power  while  acting  on  the  plate, 
and  its  efficacy  in  bringing  up  detail  on  under- 
exposed plates,  are  qualities  that  seem  to  be 
possessed  in  great  part  by  it  alone.  The 
stock  solutions,  in  separate  bottles,  keep  in- 
definitely, and  even  the  mixed  solution  has  a 
very  great  length  of  active  life,  so  that  the 
expense  of  new  chemicals  and  the  time  used 
in  mixing  them  are  both  reduced. 

The  Oxalate  Developer,  No.  7,  is  not 
adapted  to  fast  plates  or  fine  detail,  requiring 
very  skillful  handling  to  secure  these  effects 
with  it,  but  for  line  negatives,  photographs 
of  engravings,  or  where  black  and  white  ef- 
fects are  desired,  it  is  extremely  useful. 

The  last  developer  mentioned,  Rodinal, 
we  consider  the  most  desirable  solution  for 
the  beginner,  for  in  his  first  experiments  there 
is  less  liability  of  his  making  mistakes  with 
it,  mistakes  which  he  cannot  trace.  From 
every  point  of  view  it  is  one  of  the  most  re- 
markable and  excellent  one-solution  devel- 
opers which  can  be  bought.  Prepared  by 
experienced  manufacturers,  its  quality  and 
strength  are  not  likely  to  vary,  and  compara- 
tive results  can  be  safely  made. 

Instantaneous  Exposures  have  their  sue- 


5° 


The  Photographic  Primer. 


cessful  qualities  better  insured  if  placed  for 
from  3  to  5  minutes  before  development  in 
the  following  solution  : 


Carbonate  of  Soda  5  drachms 

Distilled  Water  7  ounces 

This  solution  may  be  kept  and  used  again. 

Acid  Fixing-Bath. 

a  f  Hyposulphite  of  Soda  ....  32  ounces 

\  Water  3  quarts 

f  Water  1  quart 

g  J  Sulphuric  Acid   y2  ounce 

I  Sulphite  of  Soda  (crystals)  .  .  3  ounces 
[  Chrome  Alum  3  ounces 


When  dissolved,  pour  B  into  A. 

This  is  a  thoroughly  reliable  bath,  and 
keeps  indefinitely.  Frilling  (or  11  crimping") 
of  the  film  on  the  plate,  or  softening  are 
entirely  prevented,  and  clear,  crisp  negatives 
result.  Fresh  Hypo  may  be  added  as  the 
solution  weakens,  or  a  new  bath  made  up. 
During  cold  weather  half  of  B  is  sufficient. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  use  the  Acid  Fixing 
Bath,  as  the  plates  can  be  fixed  in  a  simple 
solution  of  Hypo,  as  follows : 

Hyposulphite  of  Soda  4  ounces 

Water  1  pint 

All  developers  must  be  kept  cool  in  sum- 
mer and  not  too  cold  in  winter.  To  keep 
the  fixing  bath  cool  in  summer,  place  a  lump 
of  hypo  in  one  corner  of  the  tray,  and  as  it 
dissolves  it  will  lower  the  temperature  of 
the  solution  perceptibly. 


PART  II 

m 


Section  I. 


THE  EXPOSURE. 


FTER  you  have  learned  to  handle 
your  camera,  without  attempting 
to  take  a  picture,  and  gotten  the 
working  of  it  so  easy  to  hand  that 
you  can  do  everything  rapidly  and 
evenly,  you  will  be  ready  to  try  your  first  ex- 
posure in  the  field. 

Take  your  three  plate-holders  and  box  of 
plates  (unopened)  and  go  into  your  dark- 
room. It  is  assumed  that  you  have  spent  a 
half-hour  in  this  room  in  total  darkness,  spying 
for  any  cracks  which  admit  daylight  or  any 
other  kind  of  white  light,  and  that  you  have 
found  it  absolutely  dark.  (If  you  have  any 
doubt  on  the  subject,  you  can  find  in  the  next 
section  of  the  Primer  a  method  of  proving 
the  integrity  of  your  dark-room. )  Light  your 
developing  lantern  and  fix  it  to  cast  only  the 
deep  orange-red  light.  Then  open  the  box  of 
plates  by  running  a  pen-knife  blade  around 
the  edge  at  the  bottom  of  the  box  where  the 
paper  is  pasted  and  lapped  over  the  open 

(53) 


54 


The  Photographic 


joints.  The  box  is  telescopic  in  form,  one 
half  fitting  into  the  other,  and  some  plate- 
makers  pack  the  plates  in  a  double  box,  both 
telescopic  and  one  smaller  than  the  other. 
Inside  the  box  you  will  find  two  flat  pack- 
ages, each  wrapped  in  dark  paper  and  each 
containing  six  plates.  Remove  one  of  these 
packages  and  close  the  box  as  you  found  it. 
(You  need  not  paste  the  paper  over  the  joint, 
of  course.)  The  box  with  the  remaining 
plates  had  best  remain  in  the  dark-room,  or, 
at  any  rate,  be  put  away  in  a  dark,  dry  closet. 
Take  the  package  of  six  plates  removed  and 
unwrap  carefully,  keeping  a  couple  of  feet 
away  from  your  lantern  or  light.  Take  up  a 
plate-holder  and  remove  both  slides,  laying 
them  with  their  outside  faces  downward  upon 
the  table  or  shelf  in  the  room.  Then  take 
one  plate  from  the  package,  handling  it  aitirely 
by  the  edges.  If  you  glance  along  each  side, 
holding  the  plate  at  an  angle  with  the  reflected 
light,  you  will  find  that  one  side  is  highly  pol- 
ished and  the  other  dull.  The  dull  side  is  the 
coated  side  and  in  placing  the  plate  in  the  plate- 
holder  this  face  is  put  outward  next  to  the  slide, 
the  polished  side  being  the  clean  glass  of  the 
back  of  the  plate.  You  have  learned,  of 
course,  as  previously  advised,  to  put  a  piece 
of  plain  glass  in  the  holder,  and  so  find  no 
difficulty  in  doing  the  same  thing  with  the 


Primer:  The  Exposure. 


55 


coated  plate.  Have  ready  a  small,  flat  brush 
of  camel's  hair,  clean  and  dry,  and  with  its 
soft  surface  remove  any  dust  from  the  face  of 
the  plate ;  and  then,  if  you  are  sure  the  plate 
is  in  its  proper  place,  put  the  slide  in  at  once, 
remembering  that  as  you  have  laid  the  slides 
the  top  face  goes  next  to  the  plate.  Then 
turn  the  plate-holder  over  and  put  another 
plate  in  the  other  side,  and  so  on  until  the 
three  holders  are  full.  You  can  then  come 
out  of  your  da»k-room  and  put  the  holders  in 
your  camera  carrying  case.  These  general 
directions  for  filling  the  plate-holders  apply 
to  all  kinds  of  plates  except  the  extremely 
rapid.  When  you  come  to  use  these  you 
should  put  them  in  the  holders  without  using 
any  light,  in  perfect  darkness,  by  mere  sense 
of  touch.  To  tell  the  coated  side  of  a  plate 
you  have  but  to  remember  one  thing.  Every 
two  plates  of  the  six  are  packed  as  couples, 
face  to  face,  so  that  the  first  plate  you  pick 
up  has  its  coated  surface  down,,  the  second 
plate  has  its  coated  face  up,  the  third  down, 
and  so  on. 

The  choice  of  your  first  subject  is  left  to 
your  own  sweet  whim,  but  a  bit  of  landscape 
is  the  simplest  thing  to  handle.  And  a  few 
words  on  this  subject  must  condense  the  infor- 
mation you  will  find  in  books  on  the  charac- 
teristics of  views  as  adapted  to  pictures.  It 


56 


The  Photographic 


must  be  borne  in  mind  that  any  real  work  of 
art  is  always  limited  as  to  the  field  of  its  sub- 
ject, and  that  the  choice  must  be  made  of  a 
sectio?i  of  a  wide  view,  else  the  picture  will  be 
a  flat  failure.  Whatever  you  choose  to  point 
your  camera  at  should  have  something  in  the 
foreground,  fairly  close  to  you,  which  will  be 
the  strong  note  in  the  picture,  and  give  it  its 
character.  The  human  eye  can  sweep  over  a 
wide  view  and  take  it  all  in ;  the  lens  cannot, 
and  when  it  is  made  to  do  service  as  the  por- 
trayer  of  a  panorama,  the  value  of  the  result 
is  depreciated  in  proportion  to  the  greater 
field  you  try  to  make  it  cover.  This  subject 
you  must  think  about  for  yourself  and  by  de- 
grees gain  the  right  sense  of  proportion  in 
values,  as  the  relative  parts  of  a  picture  are 
called.  At  any  rate,  be  content  with  a  nar- 
rower outlook  to  commence  with,  and  you  will 
not  be  so  disappointed  in  your  early  pictures. 

Arrived  at  the  point  where  you  wish  to  make 
the  picture,  take  out  the  camera  and  put  it  on 
the  tripod,  as  you  have  learned  to  do  already. 
Take  off  the  lens  cap,  and  with  the  largest 
stop  in  your  lens,  see  what  sort  of  view  you 
have  on  the  ground  glass.  Study  it  awhile, 
and  make  sure  it  is  somewhere  near  what  you 
want,  moving  the  camera  by  swinging  it  around 
on  its  tripod  pivot,  or  moving  the  whole  affair, 
if  necessary.    When  the  ground-glass  picture 


Primer:  The  Exposure. 


57 


is  what  you  think  it  ought  to  be,  then  exam- 
ine your  camera  carefully  and  see  that  it  is 
level.  If  you  have  a  poor  eye  for  such  busi- 
ness, you  may  add  a  pocket-level  to  your  out- 
fit at  a  cost  of  25  cents.  With  this  level 
you  can  manage  the  whole  business  quickly 
and  neatly,  and  after  making  sure  that  your 
tripod  is  firm  and  your  camera  box  level 
both  ways,  take  another  look  at  the  ground- 
glass  picture.  The  shifting  of  the  camera  to 
get  it  level  may  have  left  something  out  of  the 
picture  which  you  wished  to  have  in  it.  If  it 
is  to  one  side,  you  can  swing  the  camera  on  its 
pivot ;  if  it  is  above  or  below,  you  can  raise  or 
lower  the  sliding  front  board,  on  which  the  lens 
is  established,  until  everything  comes  on  the 
plate  as  you  want  it.  It  must  be  noted,  how- 
ever, that  the  extent  of  moving  the  sliding  front 
is  controlled  by  the  covering  power  of  your  lens. 
If  it  is  only  intended  to  cover  or  make  a  4  x  5 
picture  (assuming  this  as  the  size  of  your  cam- 
era), the  raising  or  lowering  will  tend  to  make 
the  other  margin  of  the  view  on  the  plate 
somewhat  undefined  and  not  sharp.  The 
movement  of  the  front  throws  the  center  of 
the  lens  above  or  below  the  center  of  the 
plate,  and  leaves  the  part  farthest  from  the 
center  of  the  lens  less  sharply  defined.  It 
is  partly  for  this  reason  that,  having  estab- 
lished the  whole  of  the  image  you  wish  to  have 


The  Photographic 


on  the  plate,  you  should  re-focus  and  get 
everything  sharp  and  clear.  It  is  presumed 
that  you  focused  or  moved  the  front  board  of 
the  camera  by  means  of  the  controlling  screw 
and  notched  track  when  you  first  looked  at 
the  picture,  but  some  little  difference  may 
have  been  made  by  the  movement  of  the 
camera  to  get  it  level,  and  you  can  now  fix 
it  absolutely.  Try  now  with  one  of  the 
smaller  stops  or  diaphragms,  slipping  it  into 
the  slot  in  the  lens  tube,  or  as  the  case  may 
be,  and  looking  at  the  ground  glass  once  more. 
The  brightness  of  the  picture  is  lessened,  but 
the  sharpness  will  be  found  increased.  When 
the  picture  is  sharp  and  clear  just  outside  of  the 
center,  secure  the  sliding  front  of  your  camera 
by  whatever  device  the  camera  furnishes,  an<? 
put  on  the  lens  cap.  With  the  focusing  cloth 
thrown  over  the  camera,  slide  in  one  of  the 
plate-holders,  keeping,  of  course,  the  slide- 
pull  end  next  to  you.  When  you  are  sure 
that  the  plate-holder  is  where  it  ought  to  be, 
and  not  half  in,  throw  the  cloth  over  the 
entire  back  of  the  camera,  taking  care  that 
an  end  of  it  does  not  cover  the  lens.  You 
can  then  raise  it  until  you  see  the  end  of  the 
plate-holder  slide  next  to  the  camera,  and  pull 
the  slide  gently  out. 

At  this  point  let  us  think,  in  anticipation, 
how  everything  stands  related.     The  cap  is 


Primer:  The  Exposure. 


59 


on  the  lens,  hence  the  interior  of  the  camera 
box  is  in  total  darkness.  The  plate-holder, 
facing  the  inside  of  this  dark  box,  has  the 
slide  removed  and  the  sensitive  plate  facing 
the  darkness.  When  you  remove  the  cap 
from  the  lens  the  bright  picture  you  saw  on 
the  ground  glass  will  flash  over  that  sensitive 
surface  and  print  its  image  there  in  a  few  sec- 
onds. Before  you  take  the  cap  away,  decide 
on  the  time  of  exposure  you  will  give,  and 
then  remove  it  gently,  lingering  not. 

The  time  of  exposure  cannot  be  taught, 
but  it  can  be  learned  with  a  little  thought, 
care  and  observation.  It  cannot  be  taught, 
because  it  varies  with  the  lens,  the  diaphragm, 
the  plate,  the  kind  of  view,  and  the  time  of 
day.  The  plate-maker,  in  his  circular,  gen- 
erally gives  some  general  memoranda  for  the 
use  of  each  kind  of  plates  he  makes,  and 
these  directions  will  be  useful  to  the  amateur 
at  the  beginning  of  his  work. 

The  time  of  day  and  the  season  of  the  year 
in  which  the  exposure  is  made,  each  affects 
the  methods  used  and  the  result.  From  May 
until  September  the  quality  of  daylight  is 
much  brighter  than  the  balance  of  the  year, 
so  that  a  shorter  exposure  will  give  the  nega- 
tive. During  the  autumn,  winter  and  early 
spring  months  a  longer  exposure  is  necessary, 
except  in  pictures  taken  with  snow  on  the 


6o 


The  Photographic 


ground.  The  reflected  white  of  the  intense 
light  of  the  snow  demands  careful  treatment 
and  quick  exposure.  Snow  scenes  are  hard 
to  obtain  with  light  and  shade  values  of  a  sat- 
isfactory sort,  but  they  are  often  brilliantly 
beautiful.  The  time  of  day  at  any  season  is 
an  important  factor.  The  picture  taken  be- 
tween 10  a.  m.  and  2  p.  m.  on  a  clear  day 
yields  a  strong  negative  in  one-third  or  one- 
half  the  time  than  if  taken  slightly  earlier  or 
later,  but  one  less  artistic  in  results  than  if 
taken  at  an  earlier  or  later  hour,  since  the 
long  shadows  of  the  morning  or  afternoon  give 
added  beauty  and  contrast  to  the  view.  In 
addition  to  this,  the  time  of  the  exposure  must, 
of  course,  be  lengthened,  and  more  detail  is 
obtained. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  have  a  perfectly  clear 
day  to  secure  a  good  photograph,  cloudy 
days  yielding  results  of  the  most  artistic  de- 
scription on  account  of  the  less  sharp  divi- 
sions of  light  and  shade,  while  the  strength  of 
detail  is  also  improved,  the  objects  in  shadow 
having  a  chance  to  play  their  full  part  in  the 
picture.  Taken  in  broad  sunshine,  the  view 
has  such  intense  contrasts  that  the  shadow 
under  a  tree  or  any  foliage  will  entirely  alter 
the  value  of  the  color  of  any  object  placed 
there,  often  marking  the  Caucasian  subject 
with  the  skin  tones  of  a  mulatto.    It  is  in  the 


Primer:  The  Exposure, 


61 


consideration  of  these  things  that  the  finer 
study  of  photographic  work  opens  up  such  an 
immense  field,  and  it  is  only  by  study  and 
close  attention  to  results  under  different  con- 
ditions that  you  can  attain  any  skill  in  the 
work.  The  most  extensive  and  elaborate  de- 
scription cannot  tell  you  how  to  do  the  work  ; 
it  can  only  help  you  to  see  how  others  have 
gotten  their  results. 

If  the  cap  has  been  left  off  the  lens  while 
this  digression  has  gone  forward,  your  picture 
is  ruined  ;  but  we  presume  that  you  have 
noted  the  time  you  had  decided  to  give  the 
plate,  verified  it  by  your  watch,  and  immedi- 
ately covered  the  lens  with  the  cap,  using  the 
same  quickness  and  quietness  of  motion  as  in 
removing  it.  It  must  be  remembered  that  in 
the  fractional  instant  light  is  admitted  through 
the  lens  the  plate  commences  to  respond,  and 
if  the  cap  is  held  hesitatingly  before  the  end 
of  the  lens,  a  blurred  image  of  it  will  at  once 
start  on  the  plate.  It  is  for  this  reason  that 
the  cap  must  never  pause  when  being  taken 
off,  and  must  never  intrude  on  the  lens  when 
covering  it,  except  to  at  once  and  decidedly 
shut  out  the  view. 

The  replacing  of  the  cap  is  the  signal  for 
putting  the  slide  back  into  the  plate-holder 
at  once,  and  thus  shutting  the  plate  in  its  pri- 
vacy.   If  another  plate  is  to  be  exposed  on 


62 


The  Photographic 


the  same  scene — and  at  the  commencement 
this  is  not  a  bad  idea,  giving  the  two  plates 
different  time  and  noting  the  result — some 
care  should  be  exercised  not  to  move  the 
camera  in  the  operation.  The  slide  securely 
in,  all  the  way,  remove  the  plate-holder  and 
note  on  its  tablet  the  subject,  date,  time  of 
day,  kind  of  day,  length  of  exposure,  lens,  and 
the  number  of  the  diaphragm  (the  kind  of 
plate  being  supposed  to  be  already  recorded 
there).    For  example  : 

Carb.  B.— Mill  Dam,  Old  York  lens— 2  sec. 

10/20/95  —  10  a.  m. — fair;  sun — stop  No.  

This  record  can  be  transferred  to  your  reg- 
ister at  home  as  "  Carbutt  B,  view  of  Mill 
Dam,  Old  York  Road,  Oct.  20,  1895,  10  a.  m. 
Time,  2  seconds,  etc."  With  such  memo- 
randa on  your  plate-holder,  you  can  dismiss 
the  matter  from  your  mind  until  you  enter  the 
dark-room,  the  notation  on  this  side  of  the 
holder  showing  that  the  plate  is  used  and 
must  not  be  exposed  again — a  danger,  by  the 
way,  which  often  leads  to  vexatious  and  un- 
fortunate errors.  It  is  odd,  after  the  general 
knowledge  about  cameras,  extending  over  so 
many  years,  that  many  people  imagine  that  a 
dry-plate  is  capable  of  receiving  an  unlimited 
number  of  images  and  somehow  keeping  them 
separate.  But  a  plate  once  exposed  is  forever 
married  to  the  recorded  image,  unless  that 


Primer:  The  Exposure. 


63 


\mage  be  destroyed  by  a  violent  divorce  of 
.he  sensitive  film  from  the  plate,  in  which 
event  the  residue  is  simply  a  square  of  ordi- 
nary commercial  clear  glass. 

The  diaphragms  or  stops  of  the  lens  are  a 
part  of  the  strictly  mechanical  apparatus,  and 
they  play  a  leading  part  in  the  effectiveness 
of  the  picture.  Their  purpose  is  to  reduce 
the  amount  of  light  passing  through  the  lens, 
and  by  this  means  increase  the  depth  and 
contrast  in  the  view.  The  small  stop  in- 
creases the  covering  power  of  the  lens  by  de- 
fining the  image  at  the  margins  of  the  plate 
and  sharpening  it  to  the  edge.  With  the 
open  lens,  that  is,  without  any  stop,  the  pic- 
ture is  flatter  and  more  uniform  as  to  lighting, 
and  the  edges  become  slightly  vague  as  to 
detail,  while  the  center  of  the  picture  shows 
clearly  cut  sharp  lines  in  the  image.  The  in- 
sertion of  the  stop  and  the  cutting  down  of 
the  light  distributes  this  sharpness  more  uni- 
formly and  carries  it  to  the  margins  of  the 
plate.  The  light  and  shade  values  of  broad, 
plane  surfaces  and  rounded  objects  in  partial 
shadow  are  entirely  different,  and  the  rela- 
tive values  are  not  preserved  with  the  open 
lens,  a  broad,  flat  picture  being  the  result, 
while  the  lessening  of  the  aperture  by  means 
of  the  stops  brings  out  the  contrasts  with 
vigor  and  decision.     In  a  rough  way  an  illus- 


64 


The  Photographic 


tration  of  this  can  be  gained  by  looking  at 
any  bit  of  view  from  a  window  as  we  ordi- 
narily look  at  it  with  the  two  eyes,  and  then 
taking  a  piece  of  cardboard  large  enough  to 
shield  the  face,  and  looking  through  a  half- 
inch  hole  in  it  at  the  same  view  with  one  eye. 
Seen  through  the  small  hole,  you  will  notice 
that  the  view  has  gained  in  distinctness  of 
impression,  and  that  you  see  the  light  and 
dark  sides  of — say  a  tree  trunk — with  greater 
distinctness.  The  choice  of  stop  or  dia- 
phragm opening  thus  gives  a  great  deal  of 
scope  to  the  skill  and  observation  of  the  pho- 
tographic operator,  and  the  best  way  to  learn 
the  value  of  this  is  by  a  simple,  practical  ex- 
ample. Expose  a  plate  on  the  same  subject 
for  each  stop  your  lens  carries,  using  the 
same  kind  of  plate,  and  noting  that  the 
smaller  your  stop  the  less  the  light  and  thg 
longer  the  exposure.  If  your  lens  has  five  stops, 
the  five  plates  will  all  vary  in  character  as 
much  as  if  exposed  at  different  times  of  the 
day.  Observation  of  the  results  will  teach 
you  much  about  your  lens. 

In  the  broad  field  of  lenses  there  are  two 
distinct  classes,  one  called  wide-angle  and  the 
other  narrow. 

The  wide-angle  lens  is  made  so  that  it  will 
embrace  a  more  extended  field,  and  is  used 
for  architectural  photography  and  interiors, 


Primer:  The  Exposure. 


&5 


or  in  any  place  where  the  requirements  call 
for  the  camera  to  be  used  at  close  quarters 
with  an  extended  subject.  In  a  perspective 
the  horizon  is  subtended  by  an  angle  of  900, 
and  there  are  wide-angle  lenses  made  which 
will  take  this  all  in,  and  some  claim  to  even 
go  beyond  that.  For  ordinary  use  such  lenses 
are  unsuitable,  an  angle  of  6o°  being  ample. 
Distortion  of  the  image  on  the  edge  of  the 
plate  is  often  the  consequence  in  using  the 
wide-angle  lens  in  unsuitable  places.  What 
is  called  a  view  lens  is  most  suitable  for  gen- 
eral work,  where  a  wide  view  with  the  camera 
near  to  it  is  not  demanded. 

For  out-door  photography,  choose  a  day 
with  very  little  wind.  Trees  in  motion  and  a 
camera  oscillating  with  the  impact  of  the 
breeze  will  not  tend  to  produce  good  results ; 
neither  will  the  focusing  cloth  add  to  your 
happiness,  for  under  these  circumstances  it 
will  develop  all  its  good  qualities  as  a  sail. 
It  is  not  impossible,  of  course,  at  the  present 
day,  to  make  a  photograph  under  any  con- 
ditions, but  for  moving  objects  or  a  restless 
landscape,  you  need  an  instantaneous  shutter 
and  very  fast  plates.  Unless  the  beginner  is 
lacking  in  sources  of  worriment  and  courts 
trouble,  he  had  best  leave  fast  photography 
alone  until  he  can  make  a  good  picture  in  the 
old-fashioned  slow  way. 


66 


The  Photographic 


Indoor  photography  is  full  of  attraction 
and  amusement,  and  can  generally  be  fol- 
lowed with  less  inconvenience  than  when 
working  out  of  doors.  The  matter  of  lighting 
offers  the  greatest  difficulty  under  ordinary 
conditions,  and  the  careful  preparation  of 
surroundings  necessary  to  secure  good  results 
has  often  a  tendency  to  discourage  the  ama- 
teur until  he  has  become  accustomed  to  the. 
easier  conditions  out-of-doors.  If  his  interest 
in  photography  is  strong  he  will  not  be  able 
to  resist  the  desire  to  make  some  experiments 
in  this  line,  and  they  will  add  to  his  stock  of 
knowledge.  Exposures  by  flash  light  have 
helped  to  the  solution  of  indoor  lighting,  but 
flash  light  pictures  are  rarely  artistic,  and  have 
added  but  a  small  share  of  beautiful  results 
to  the  art.  There  is  a  branch  of  in-door  pho- 
tography, both  fascinating  and  simple,  which 
we  should  mention  here,  and  that  is  the  copy- 
ing of  engravings,  paintings,  etc.  The  main 
requirement  is  an  even  lighting  of  the  print  or 
picture,  shadows  or  reflected  light  on  the  sur- 
face destroying  the  effect  of  the  negative.  If 
this  is  not  looked  after  the  negative  will  have 
areas  of  light  and  dark  corresponding  to  the 
inequalities  of  the  illumination,  and  the  work 
will  be  ruined. 

As  a  rapid  exposure  is  not  essential,  the 
lens  may  be  stopped  down  with  the  smallest 


Primer:  The  Exposure. 


67 


diaphragm  to  secure  sharp  definition,  and  a 
correspondingly  long  exposure  given  to  com- 
pensate for  the  lessened  illumination.  The 
camera  and  the  print  to  be  copied  must  be 
arranged  so  that  they  are  absolutely  parallel, 
and  no  chance  must  be  allowed  for  the  least 
vibration  of  either,  otherwise  the  negative  will 
be  spoiled. 

For  this  kind  of  work  the  best  plate,  be- 
yond question — and  especially  if  the  subject 
be  in  color — is  Cramer's  Slow  Isochromatic, 
as  it  yields  the  full  color  values  of  the  original. 
As  this  plate  is  extremely  sensitive  to  light, 
care  in  the  development  is  more  than  neces- 
sary. 


Section  II. 


THE  DEVELOPMENT. 


OR  a  time  the  scene  changes  from 
sunshine  to  darkness,  the  next 
stage  of  the  work  being  carried 
on  in  the  dark-room. 
When  we  speak  of  a  dark-room, 
it  does  not  follow,  by  any  means,  that  one 
must  have  a  room  devoted  solely  to  that  pur- 
pose, although  if  you  can  obtain  such  a  room, 
or  adapt  a  small  room  to  the  work,  it  will  add 
to  your  convenience  and  comfort.  One  of  the 
present  writers  has  made  hundreds  of  nega- 
tives, and  dabbled  in  all  sorts  of  photographic 
work,  but  he  has  never  attained  to  the  dignity 
of  such  an  absolute  sanctum.  Generally  an 
ordinary  kitchen  has  answered  the  purpose, 
chosen  because  it  gave  command  of  running 
water  and  sink  facilities.  Any  room  which 
has  running  water,  and  which  can  be  made 
absolutely  dark,  will  answer  to  the  general 
needs.  But  the  feature  of  absolute  and  un- 
compromising darkness  must  be  insisted  on. 
Light  coming  under  doors,  through  blinds  or 

(68) 


The  Development. 


69 


shades,  cracks  or  crevices,  will  always  en- 
danger the  work.  If  you  will  remain  in  the 
room,  as  we  have  noted  before,  for  fifteen  or 
twenty  minutes  after  it  has  been  darkened,  or 
after  you  think  it  has  been  darkened,  you  will 
be  surprised  at  the  number  of  unknown  and 
unthought  of  sources  of  light,  sly  shafts  of  it 
finding  a  way  into  the  room  in  ways  unper- 
ceived  during  the  first  few  minutes  of  occu- 
pancy. While  this  test  is  not  empirical,  it  is 
at  least  a  fairly  safe  one  for  all  ordinary 
usage.  The  developing  light,  the  orange-red 
light  from  either  the  lamp  or  from  a  prepared 
window  panel,  must  be  the  next  thing  to  make 
sure  of.  This  can  be  accomplished  by  putting 
a  fresh  plate  into  one  of  your  holders,  per- 
forming the  operation  in  the  dark-room  with 
the  orange  light  entirely  excluded — in  the 
tested  and  perfect  darkness.  Close  the  slide 
of  the  holder  and  light  the  orange  ruby 
light.  Then  draw  the  slide  of  the  plate- 
holder  half  way  out,  exposing  one  half  of  the 
plate  and  keeping  it  as  far  away  from  the 
orange  light  as  you  ordinarily  would  in  devel- 
oping and  for  a  time  equal  to  the  number  of 
minutes  which  would  be  spent  in  develop- 
ment— which  may  be  assumed  to  be  about 
ten  minutes.  When  that  time  has  elapsed 
close  the  slide  entirely  and  immediately  shut 
out  all  the  non-actinic  or  orange  light  and 


7o 


The  Photographic 


proceed  to  develop  the  plate  in  the  absolute 
darkness  of  the  room.  When  developed  and 
fixed  the  plate  should  show  all  clear  glass,  with 
no  trace  of  anything  upon  it  except  the  slight 
coating  of  gelatine,  almost  transparent,  and 
with  no  apparent  difference  in  any  part  of  it. 
This  would  indicate  that  the  light  was  safe. 
If  it  is  not  safe  the  plate  will  show  a  plain 
line  of  demarcation,  and  one  half  of  it  (the 
half  exposed  to  the  orange  light)  will  be 
tinged  with  more  or  less  of  grey,  while  the 
unexposed  half  will  show  clear  glass.  This 
test  will  at  once  settle  the  reliable  or  unreli- 
able character  of  your  developing  light.  It 
is  to  be  noted,  however,  that  the  test  ought 
to  be  made  with  a  fairly  fast  plate,  such  as 
Cramer's  Crown,  or  Carbutt's  Special  or  Seeds 
26x,  for  the  slower  plate  could  deceive  you 
into  believing  the  light  satisfactory  for  all 
plates,  when  it  might  only  be  fit  for  slow 
plates. 

The  darkness  and  lamp  quality  assured,  the 
orange-red  light  can  be  arranged  and  work 
commenced.  Before  the  white  light  is  ex- 
cluded you  should  make  sure  that  everything 
which  you  may  need  is  in  the  room,  that  it  is 
in  a  handy  place,  and  that  you  will  be  able  to 
find  it  under  the  new  conditions.  The  plate- 
holders  ought  to  be  placed  on  a  table  or  shelf 
a  little  way  from  the  light  and  water  splash- 


Primer:  The  Development. 


7i 


ing,  while  the  developing  trays,  chemicals, 
graduates  and  fixing-bath  ought  to  be  handy 
to  the  water.  Don't  put  anything  in  the  sink  ; 
you  will  want  to  have  the  running  water,  and 
you  can  never  be  sure  that  something  will  not 
get  into  the  trays  which  has  no  business  there. 

The  three  trays  are  placed  conveniently, 
the  first  one  rinsed  out  with  water  and  drained, 
the  second  filled  with  clean,  cool  water,  and 
the  third  filled  three-quarters  full  with  the 
hypo  or  fixing  solution.  The  bottle  of  Bro- 
mide of  Potassium  or  restrainer  ought  to  be 
in  a  position  where  you  can  instantly  lay 
your  hand  on  it.  Have  your  mixed  developer 
in  the  graduate,  and  a  clean  towel  handy,  so 
that  you  can  always  rinse  and  dry  your  hands 
before  you  touch  the  plates  in  the  plate-hold- 
ers. 

With  the  few  accessories  thus  disposed  in 
orderly  fashion,  the  developing  light  placed 
about  a  foot  from  the  trays,  and  the  white 
light  shut  out,  open  one  of  the  plate-holders, 
and  take  out  a  plate;  don't  take  them  all 
out,  but  only  as  you  need  them  for  develop- 
ment. Handle  the  plate  by  the  edges,  and 
place  face  upward  in  the  tray.  It  is  a  good 
idea  to  dampen  the  tray  with  water  and 
drain,  so  that  the  developer  will  flow  freely 
when  poured  in,  and  for  a  similar  reason,  the 
plate  may  be  rinsed  under  the  cool,  clear, 


72 


The  Photographic 


running  water  for  an  instant,  since  it  is  nec- 
essary for  the  developer  to  flow  freely  over 
the  entire  plate  at  one  clean  sweep,  and  the 
surface  of  the  plate,  when  dry,  sometimes  re- 
fuses to  take  it  promptly.  In  such  instances, 
one  part  of  the  plate,  if  fully  exposed,  may 
commence  to  respond  to  the  action  of  the 
developing  fluid  before  the  part  which  the 
developer  has  skipped  gets  its  return  flow 
of  the  fluid.  Never,  under  any  circumstances, 
pour  or  allow  the  water  or  developer  to  flow 
directly  dow?i  on  the  surface  of  the  plate ; 
always  let  it  come  in  contact  with  the  plate 
with  a  sideways  flow. 

The  plate  in  the  pan,  pour  the  developer 
with  one  clean,  easy  sweep  over  the  surface 
of  it,  and  then  keep  up  a  gentle  motion,  caus- 
ing the  developer  to  flow  backward  and  for- 
ward over  the  surface.  If  this  latter  point  is 
not  attended  to,  the  plate  will  be  marked  by 
irregular  stains  and  streaks,  which  will  ruin 
it.  (A  simple  way  to  rock  the  tray  is  to 
place  a  small  stick,  such  as  a  lead  pencil, 
under  its  center,  and  '  'see-saw"  on  it.) 
Keep  up  this  gentle  motion,  and  have  your 
eye  on  the  creamy  white  rectangle  in  the 
tray.  An  interval  of  time  will  elapse,  and 
from  the  whiteness  a  tint  of  grey  will  show 
itself  here  and  there,  darkening  steadily,  if 
the  exposure  is  near  right,  at  some  points 


Primer:  The  Development. 


73 


darker,  at  others  lighter.  The  whole  ex- 
pression of  the  plate  in  the  pan  changes, 
and  in  a  little  while  the  plate  seems  to  fade 
away  against  the  grey  black  bottom  of  the 
tray.  If  this  action  is  very  rapid,  if  the  dark 
tones  flash  all  over  the  plate  at  once,  pour 
the  developer  from  the  tray  back  into  the 
graduate,  taking  care  that  the  plate  does 
not  slip  during  the  operation.  Add  to  the 
solution  in  the  glass  a  small  quantity  of  Bro- 
mide of  Potassium  (restrainer),  and  pour 
back  over  the  plate  in  the  same  fashion  as 
at  first.  The  over-prompt  greyness  has 
shown  that  the  image  thrown  by  the  lens 
rested  upon  the  plate  too  long,  and  the  result 
to  be  avoided  in  this  contingency  is  flatness  in 
the  negative.  The  sky  and  all  white  objects 
ought  to  be  blackest  on  the  plate,  but  with 
what  is  called  a  flat  negative,  these  parts  are 
too  much  of  one  tone  with  the  rest  of  it,  in- 
stead of  preserving  their  independent  values. 
The  restrainer  or  retarder  checks  the  over- 
quick  action  of  the  developer,  giving  those 
sections  of  the  plate  which  have  had  the 
most  light,  and  therefore  ought  to  be  dark- 
est, a  chance  to  get  ahead  of  the  other  parts, 
and  retain  their  proper  balance. 

With  a  normal  exposure  the  development 
is  comparatively  simple,  and  a  few  trials  will 
teach  you  how  to  avoid  the  grosser  errors. 


74 


The  Photographic 


The  nice  use  of  judgment  comes  into  play 
for  under  and  over-exposed  plates,  and  these 
seem  to  constitute  the  bulk  of  the  results. 
For  this  reason  a  little  time  spent  on  the  sub- 
ject will  not  be  amiss.  In  the  opinion  of  the 
authors,  the  developer  giving  the  softest  neg- 
atives, and  those  richest  in  detail,  with  under- 
exposed plates,  is  Pyro.  In  the  hands  of 
others,  and  exceptionally  in  ours,  other  de- 
velopers have  produced  fine  negatives  from 
extremely  short  exposures,  but  the  results 
obtained  with  Pyro  are  so  uniform,  and  the 
management  of  the  developer  so  extremely 
simple,  that  we  have  learned  to  rely  on  it. 
The  principal  objections  to  its  use  are  the 
necessity  of  always  making  fresh  solutions 
from  the  dry  salt,  the  liability  to  stain,  and 
the  imperative  demand  for  continuous  rock- 
ing of  the  developing  tray.  But  these  dis- 
advantages in  the  Pyro  developer  are  more 
than  compensated  for  by  the  resulting  nega- 
tives, so  beautiful,  so  fine  in  printing  quality. 
To  illustrate,  suppose  we  have  a  plate  which 
we  presume,  or  know,  to  be  under-exposed. 
We  take  first  the  Alkali  solution  (carb.  soda 
and  water),  and  soak  the  plate  in  this  for 
five  minutes,  then  pouring  it  off  and  imme- 
diately flooding  the  plate  with  either  No.  3 
or  No.  4  developer  (as  given  in  Part  I.), 
and  covering  the  tray  with  a  piece  of  card* 


Primer:  The  Development. 


75 


board  to  exclude  atmosphere  and  light,  pro- 
ceed to  rock  the  tray,  and  keep  this  up  for 
several  minutes.  The  plate  is  then  lifted 
and  examined  by  holding  it  in  front  of  the 
dark  lantern  and  looking  through  it.  If  the 
development  has  started,  the  plate  is  replaced 
in  the  tray,  and  the  rocking  resumed,  with 
occasional  examination,  until  all  the  detail 
has  come  out  on  the  plate,  and  it  seems 
quite  dense  by  the  transmitted  light.  (Pyro 
requires  denser  development  than  some  other 
developers.)  In  using  the  Pyro-Ammonia 
developer,  it  must  be  poured  off  the  plate, 
and  fresh  solution  substituted  every  20  minutes. 
If  after  40  minutes'  rocking  no  detail  appears 
in  shadows  (the  " shadows"  of  a  plate  are 
its  clear  parts),  the  plate  is  probably  worth- 
less, but  it  may  now  be  removed  and  placed 
without  rinsing  in  a  dish  of  pure  water  and, 
well  covered  up,  allowed  to  soak  for,  say  an 
hour,  to  coax  out  all  detail.  By  this  method 
many  plates,  otherwise  worthless,  may  result 
in  good  negatives,  but  if  after  this  treatment 
the  plate  still  lacks  detail,  it  had  best  be 
discarded  as  hopeless.  It  would  be  absurd, 
of  course,  to  expend  so  much  time  on  a  neg- 
ative unless  for  some  reason  it  is  very  valu- 
able, or  impossible  to  replace.  Five  to  ten 
minutes'  rocking  in  the  tray  is  enough  for 
ordinary  plates.    With  the  No.  3  developer 


76 


The  Photographic 


it  is  not  necessary  to  mix  fresh  during 
development,  but  you  must  always  com- 
mence with  fresh  (and  this  applies  to  all  Pyro 
developers).  Soaking  a  plate  in  clear  water 
for  a  time  will  always  result  in  obtaining  the 
fullest  amount  of  detail  possible,  and  if  the 
tray  is  covered  up  and  well  protected  from 
the  light  no  injury  to  the  plate  can  result. 

Over-exposed  plates  work  best  with  strong 
old  developers  and  plenty  of  bromide,  to  give 
contrast  and  avoid  flatness.  With  the  Metol 
and  Rodinal  developers  the  older  they  become 
the  clearer  and  harsher  the  results  and  the 
greater  the  contrast,  so  that  old  solutions 
should  always  be  kept  on  hand  for  over- 
exposures. 

With  normal  exposures  the  development  is 
continued  until  by  transmitted  light  (looking 
through  the  negative)  the  plate  is  quite  dense, 
and  the  image  shows  with  more  or  less  dis- 
tinctness on  the  back.  The  density  required, 
however,  differs  in  different  makes  of  plates, 
as  some  fix  out  more  than  others,  and  for  this 
part  of  the  work  experience  is  the  only  guide. 
Too  often  the  beginner  (and  others  as  well) 
is  prone  to  mistake  an  under-exposed  plate 
for  an  over-exposed,  and  vice-versa.  To 
avoid  floundering  in  error,  it  is  well  to  bear 
these  facts  in  mind  :  Under-exposed  plates  are 
brilliant,  clean,  clear,  and  full  of  contrast — 


Primer:  The  Development. 


77 


they  are  black  and  white  negatives  ;  the  light 
acting  on  different  parts  of  the  plate,  even  for 
a  very  short  time,  causes  the  developer  to 
give  a  strong,  black  film,  but  where  long  con- 
tinued action  of  the  light  occurs  it  does  not, 
as  many  suppose,  give  greater  blackness  to 
the  film,  but  makes  the  image  thin,  brown 
and  transparent.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  an 
over-exposed  plate  is  rich  in  detail,  has  no  con- 
trast (clear  glass)  and  is  not  black  but  grey, 
while  if  held  to  the  light  it  is  very  transparent. 
To  get  these  facts  well  in  mind  a  few  experi- 
ments will  aid  you  perceptibly. 

To  resume  the  development  of  our  plate. 
As  the  image  of  this  "  something"  on  it, 
which  you  will  soon  learn  to  know  and  dis- 
tinguish part  for  part,  becomes  more  lost  in 
the  universal  darkness  which  spreads  over  the 
film,  you  may  pick  it  out  of  the  tray  and 
look  through  it,  holding  it  by  the  edges  be- 
fore the  orange  light.  Then  you  may  judge 
it  in  the  way  that  has  just  been  mentioned 
above,  and  decide  as  to  how  far  the  action  of 
the  developer  has  gone.  It  is  not  safe  to  re- 
gard the  appearance  of  the  back  of  the  plate 
as  an  index  of  its  condition  unless  you  know 
something  of  the  kind  of  plate  you  are  using. 
With  some  makes  the  image  appears  on  the 
back  in  greyish  white  and  remains  so  ;  with 
others  the  image  must  disappear  and  the  back 


78 


The  Photographic 


of  the  plate  become  wholly  of  the  black  tone 
before  development  is  completed.  Examina- 
tion by  the  transmitted  light  is  the  only  safe 
rule,  and  if  the  action  of  the  developer  is  not 
accomplished,  the  plate  must  be  put  back  in 
the  tray  and  the  rocking  continued. 

When  your  knowledge,  gained  by  the  sug- 
gestions given,  reasons  that  the  plate  has  had 
enough  fellowship  with  the  developer,  raise 
it  by  the  edges  and  let  it  drain  into  the  tray. 
The  next  tray,  it  will  be  remembered,  holds 
clean,  cool  water.  We  place  the  negative 
face  up  in  it  and  allow  it  to  remain  a  couple  of 
minutes,  then  drain  the  water  from  the  tray 
and  cover  the  plate  with  fresh  water.  This 
operation  ought  to  be  repeated  three  or  four 
times,  and  when  you  are  sure  of  handling  the 
plate  by  the  edges  skillfully,  you  may  wash  it 
under  the  running  cold  water,  allowing  the 
water  to  flow  over  it  slantwise  and  not  directly 
down  on  it. 

After  this  washing  or  soaking,  the  plate  is 
placed  face  upward  in  the  third  or  fixing  tray, 
containing  the  solution  of  Hyposulphite  of 
Soda.  Just  before  putting  it  there,  hold  it  in 
front  of  the  orange  light. 

You  will  notice  that  it  is  still  opaque  in  the 
lighter  sections  and  that  the  dark  parts  are 
very  opaque.  Put  it  in  the  fixing-bath,  and 
as  your  fingers  will  probably  come  in  contact 


Primer:  The  Development. 


79 


with  the  soda,  wash  your  hands  thoroughly 
and  dry  them  before  touching  anything  else. 
Now  you  may  take  the  second  plate  from  its 
holder  and  go  on  with  the  development  of  it, 
while  the  first  one  is  resting  in  the  fixing- 
bath ;  but  as  it  is  your  first  plate,  we  would 
advise  you  to  wait  for  about  10  minutes  and 
see  the  developed  negative  before  attempting 
more.  After  the  lapse  of  this  time  lift  the 
plate  from  the  tray,  always  by  the  edges,  and 
look  at  it  in  front  of  the  developing  light.  A 
surprising  change  ought  to  have  taken  place  : 
all  of  the  grey-white  should  have  vanished 
and  the  plate  show  the  negative  picture  in  all 
its  varied  ranges  of  grey  and  grey-black,  a 
certain  element  of  light  and  brightness  having 
appeared.  Here,  in  black  and  white — or  light 
— is  the  negative  image  of  the  scene  you 
pointed  your  camera  at,  only,  as  it  is  a  nega- 
tive image,  everything  is  reversed.  The  bril- 
liant light  of  the  sky  is  black,  and  the  dark 
green  of  the  trees,  the  grey  of  the  rocks  or 
earth  are  of  a  lighter  hue,  while  the  whole 
image  is  reversed,  right  hand  for  left  hand  as 
it  really  appeared.  If  you  had  taken  the 
plate,  as  you  may  freely  do  now,  out  into  the 
white  light  before  the  fixing  solution  acted 
upon  it,  it  would  have  darkened  all  over  in  a 
few  minutes ;  but  now  the  developer  has 
brought  out  the  picture  by  its  action,  the  sil- 


8o 


The  Photographic 


ver  salts,  decomposed  in  proportion  to  the 
strength  of  light  which  fell  upon  the  plate, 
have  become  grey  or  black,  and  the  Hypo 
solution  has  permanently  fixed  and  held  this 
record  by  dissolving  away  all  the  free  silver  on 
the  sections  which  the  light  did  not  strike. 

A  thorough  washing  in  clear,  clean,  cool 
water  will  complete  the  work. 

Thorough  washing  must  not  suggest  the 
wash-tub  or  soap  and  water,  but  only  water, 
and  plenty  of  it,  the  washing  being  accom- 
plished by  frequent  changes  of  water,  or  best 
of  all,  in  running  water,  the  stream  being  of 
just  sufficient  volume  to  change  the  whole 
body  of  the  water  every  few  minutes,  and  the 
washing  kept  up  for  about  two  hours.  If  the 
plate  is  then  sponged  off  with  a  tuft  of  absor- 
bent cotton,  which  must  be  wet  before  being 
used,  it  may  be  placed  in  the  drying  rack, 
which  allows  the  moisture  to  drain  all  to  one 
corner  and  the  plate  to  dry  evenly  over  its 
surface.  If  a  negative  crystallizes  on  the  film 
surface  after  drying,  it  is  an  evidence  that  the 
Hypo  has  not  been  entirely  eliminated,  and 
shows  that  your  washing  is  somewhere  at 
fault. 

When  the  negative  is  dry,  and  you  come  to 
examine  it  in  the  white  light  of  day,  you  can 
criticize  it  to  your  best  ability,  noting  a  few 
more  points  about  plates. 


Primer:  The  Development. 


81 


A  fogged  plate  is  thin  and  flat,  and  the  image 
is  lost,  as  a  ship  is,  in  the  haze  of  the  fog. 
The  cause  of  fog  is  either  that  the  plate  has 
been  light-struck  in  handling  (that  is,  white 
light  has  met  it  before  developing);  or  the 
developer  has  been  too  strong  in  alkali ;  or 
there  has  been  lack  of  bromide;  or  over-ex- 
posure ;  or  the  developer  has  been  too  warm. 

A  weak  negative  with  clear  shadows  is  caused 
by  wider-development ',  and  it  looks  very  much 
like  an  under-exposed  plate,  except  that  the 
high  lights  are  not  black,  but  weak. 

Weak  developer,  too  weak,  will  give  a  neg- 
ative full  of  detail,  but  weak  and  lacking  in 
contrasts  and  snap. 

A  negative  too  dense  means  over-develop- 
ment, the  developer  being  too  strong  or  too 
warm. 

A  weak  negative  and  a  strong  negative 
may  be  treated  to  change  their  quality  after 
fixing. 

Intensification,  or  strengthening  a  weak 
negative,  is  entirely  safe,  and  will  not  cause  a 
negative  to  fade  if  properly  done.  To  inten- 
sify proceed  as  follows  :  Wash  the  negative 
for  not  less  than  two  hours  to  eliminate  the 
Hypo — every  trace  of  it — and  then  immerse  in 
a  saturated  stock  solution  of 

BI-CHLORIDE  OF  MERCURY. 

( This  chemical  is  given  a  line  of  full  capitals 


82 


The  Photographic 


because  it  is  one  of  the  most  violent  poisons 
known,  a?id  must  be  handled  with  extreme  care. ) 

Allow  the  negative  to  remain  in  this  until  it 
is  bleached  (or  turned  white),  and  then  remove 
from  this  bath  and  place  in  a  solution  com- 
posed of 

Ammonium  Chloride  i  ounce 

Water  10  ounces 

Allow  the  plate  to  soak  for  five  minutes 
(rocking  the  tray),  and  then  wash  in  running 
water  for  10  minutes.  Then  place  in  a  bath  of 
water  to  which  a  few  drops  of  strong  ammo- 
nia have  been  added.  In  this  bath  it  will 
blacken  all  over.  Remove  and  wash  in  run- 
ning water  for  ioto  15  minutes,  and  dry.  If 
found  too  intense  it  may  be  reduced  by  im- 
mersion in  a  weak  Hypo  bath  and  then  washed 
for  not  less  than  one  hour. 

Reduction,  or  reducing  the  density  of  a 
negative,  is  accomplished  as  follows  :  Make 
a  solution  of  Red  Prussiate  of  Potash,  one 
ounce  of  it  to  15  ounces  of  water,  and  mark 
this  "Stock  Solution,"  and  note  that  it  also 
is  a  strong  poison. 

To  reduce,  take  a  fresh  Hypo  bath  and  add 
to  it  a  few  drops  of  this  solution,  immersing 
the  negative  in  it.  (The  more  potash,  the 
more  rapid  the  reduction.)  Watch  the  plate 
carefully,  and  when  sufficiently  reduced,  rinse 
in  clear  water  to  stop  the  process,  and  then 


Primer:  The  Development. 


83 


examine.  If  the  negative  is  now  satisfactory, 
wash  for  one  hour  to  eliminate  the  Hypo.  If 
certain  local  spots  require  further  reduction, 
take  a  mop  of  absorbent  cotton  and  dip  in  the 
potash  solution  and  rub  on  the  dense  spot, 
examining  constantly  until  right,  and  then 
wash.  This  work  may  all  be  done  in  day- 
light or  white  light,  and  experience  with  the 
procedure  will  save  many  a  plate  from  ruin, 
and  assist  in  producing  a  negative  which  can 
be  printed  from  with  greater  readiness. 

The  quality  in  development  which  leads  on 
to  success  is,  first  and  markedly,  cleanliness. 
The  chemicals  must  be  mixed  with  care,  the 
bottles,  trays  and  graduates  well  washed,  and 
everything  kept  separate.  The  fixing  solution 
must  not  mingle  with  the  developer  or  come 
in  contact  with  it,  and  it  was  with  this  in  view 
that  you  were  directed  to  wash  and  dry  your 
hands  after  the  fingers  had  immersed  the  plate 
in  the  Hypo.  A  little  thoughtlessness  in  these 
matters  often  produces  a  surprising  amount  of 
trouble,  and  the  worst  of  it  is  that  the  begin- 
ner, under  these  circumstances,  cannot  tell 
where  to  look  for  the  cause.  By  avoiding 
"every  appearance  of  evil,"  you  have  at 
least  one  source  of  assurance,  and  when  any- 
thing goes  wrong  you  can  trace  it  the  more 
easily.  Of  course,  the  experienced  workman 
allows  himself  a  degree  of  license,  and  may  do 


34 


The  Photographic 


things  which  the  beginner  ought  not  to  allow. 
In  the  dark-room  so  much  is  dependent  on 
mere  sense  of  locality  that  the  freedom  of 
work  done  in  daylight  cannot  be  permitted. 

The  plate-holders,  while  in  the  dark-room, 
must  be  kept  away  from  the  solutions  and  the 
water;  there  is  always  a  chance  of  them  being 
splashed  with  a  solution,  and  fresh  plates  put 
in  the  holder  in  ignorance  cf  the  trap.  The 
holders  are  meant  only  to  contain  clean,  fresh 
plates,  and  they  must  therefore  be  guarded. 
Before  filling  them  with  new  plates  the  record 
tablets  should  be  cleaned  by  rubbing  with  a 
damp  cloth,  the  record  having  been  copied  if 
desired,  and  a  number  given  to  each  plate, 
small  gummed  labels,  just  large  enough  to 
fasten  to  the  unused  margin  of  the  plate, 
being  furnished  by  the  stores  ready  to  attach 
when  the  corresponding  plate  is  taken  from 
the  rack.  After  every  use  of  the  holders  it  is 
wise  to  dust  them  out  with  a  soft  brush  before 
re-filling. 

The  plates  in  the  rack  will  take  a  few  hours 
to  dry,  depending  largely  on  the  state  of  the 
weather,  for  in  damp,  muggy  weather  the 
drying  of  the  film  takes  place  slowly.  Until 
they  are  perfectly  dry  they  must  be  let  alone, 
although  as  you  go  further  on  in  photographic 
work  you  will  learn  methods  of  speeding  the 
drying  in  special  emergencies. 


Printer:  The  Development. 


S5 


The  six  plates  in  the  three  holders,  if  all 
have  been  used,  may  be  completed  in  an 
evening,  the  procedure  in  the  case  of  each  one 
following  in  regular  order.  But  for  the  be- 
ginner, unless  unusually  apt  or  accustomed  to 
chemical  work,  this  amount  of  labor  will  be 
unwise  to  commence  with,  for  haste  makes 
waste  in  photography,  as  in  many  other  things. 

After  your  developing  work  is  finished  the 
trays,  etc.,  must  be  washed  clean  with  run- 
ning water.  Never  use  soap  or  any  cleansing 
agent  on  your  dark-room  appliances,  since  a 
fraction  of  the  alkali  in  the  soap,  left  on  a 
tray  or  graduate,  may  make  discord,  and  all  of 
the  chemicals  you  use  are  readily  soluble  in 
water,  so  that  rinsing  thoroughly  with  that 
fluid  gives  all  the  cleansing  results  you  need. 

When  from  any  cause  a  plate  is  slow  to  de- 
velop, keep  even  the  safe  light  away  from  it, 
and  only  bring  the  tray  before  the  light  as 
occasion  requires  your  looking  at  it.  With 
the  quicker  variety  of  plates  beyond  No.  25 
sensitometer,  as  marked  on  the  package,  it  is 
wisest  to  have  a  clean  piece  of  cardboard 
large  enough  to  entirely  cover  and  lap  over 
the  edges  of  the  tray  while  waiting  for  the 
developer  to  act.  It  not  only  keeps  out  the 
light,  but  in  a  warm  room,  it  also  prevents 
the  heated  air  from  acting,  as  it  will,  as  an 
accelerator  in  the  effect  of  the  developer. 


86 


The  Photographic  Primer. 


A  moderate  coolness  is  essential  to  good 
development.  Warm  solutions,  or  an  over- 
warm  room  causing  them,  do  more  than 
chemical  damage,  since  they  may  bring  about 
an  organic  change  in  the  gelatine  film  of  the 
plate  and  soften  it  so  that  it  will  pucker  or  try 
to  leave  the  glass  at  the  edges.  In  practice 
this  is  called  frilling,  and  has  often  ruined  a 
valuable  negative.  As  it  is  only  caused,  with 
good  plates,  by  too  strong  developer,  or  heat 
in  the  dark  room,  or  transferring  the  plate 
directly  from  the  developer  to  the  Hypo  with- 
out washing,  it  can  be  entirely  avoided  by 
using  precaution.  In  the  dog-days  of  sum- 
mer ice  water  and  ice  in  the  developer  and 
Hypo  solution  may  be  necessary. 

And,  to  conclude  this  chapter,  over-care  is 
a  symptom  of  danger.  It  leads  to  nervous- 
ness, and  a  being  wants  a  cool  head  in  a  dark- 
room !  There  is  a  line  of  finicky  handling  of 
everything  you  work  with  which  simply  makes 
your  pursuit  a  bore  and  a  nerve-eater.  Take  it 
to  your  heart  that  thousands  of  negatives 
as  precious  as  yours  have  gone  under  before 
your  time,  and  there  is  no  very  great  gap  in 
the  world  after  all ! 


Section  III. 


wm 


THE  PRINTING. 

■  ■ 

HERE  is  a  popular  impression  that 
the  immediate  result  of  "taking 
a  picture"  is  a  finished  photo- 
graph in  the  camera,  and  the  un- 
initiated will  express  surprise  at 
your  inability  to  answer  their  many  inquiries  : 
"  Did  you  get  it?"  "  Is  it  a  good  one?  "  "Let 
me  see  it?"  The  negative  will  always  be  a 
mystery  to  the  unenlightened ;  it  is  an  unreal 
affair,  so  different  from  the  ordinary  concep- 
tion, and  so  little  understood. 

In  photography,  the  negative  is  what  the 
type  is  in  printing,  and  "sun"  impressions 
can  be  struck  from  it  in  large  quantities,  just 
as  the  types  print  themselves  upon  the  sheets 
of  paper.  It  might  be  said  to  be  an  electro- 
type of  certain  impressions  of  nature,  capable 
of  yielding  many  prints. 

In  printing  a  photograph,  various  sub- 
stances— usually  paper — coated  with  a  light- 
sensitive  chemical  film,  are  used  to  receive 
the  impression  from  the  negative,  the  light 

(87) 


88 


The  Photographic 


action  being  similar  to  that  in  the  production 
of  the  negative.  The  light  passing  through 
the  thin  parts  of  the  negative  blackens  or  dis- 
colors the  paper,  while  the  denser  parts  hold 
back  the  light.  As  the  opacity  of  the  nega- 
tive varies  in  different  parts,  according  to  the 
light-values  received,  so  the  paper  will  show 
gradations  of  tone  and  color  corresponding  to 
the  amount  of  light  transmitted  by  the  nega- 
tive. Therefore,  the  thin  parts  of  the  nega- 
tive, which  represent  the  shadows  in  the  view, 
allow  a  large  amount  of  light  to  pass  through 
and  make  a  strong  impression  on  the  paper, 
while  the  high-lights  or  bright  parts  of  the 
view  are  black  and  opaque  in  the  negative, 
holding  back  the  light  and  making  but  little 
impression. 

The  sensitive  papers  on  which  the  prints 
are  made  are  of  many  varieties.  The  use  of 
the  negative  and  the  action  of  the  light  is  the 
same  in  all  of  them,  the  only  variation  being 
in  the  way  the  print  appears  on  the  paper,  or 
the  way  it  is  brought  out  or  fixed  there,  and 
the  amount  of  light  required  for  its  produc- 
tion. We  shall  restrict  ourselves  to  the  prin- 
cipal varieties,  which  include 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


39 


{Ferro-Prussiate, 
or 
Blue-Print  Paper. 

We  will  first  describe,  in  broad  terms,  each 
of  these  processes,  and  follow  later  with  more 
detailed  instructions  for  their  use,  giving  the 
necessary  manipulation  for  each. 

The  Plain  Salted  Paper  is  the  oldest  of 
this  group,  and,  while  not  popular  with  the 
professional  photographer  at  the  present  time, 
it  is  a  very  beautiful  and  artistic  process,  and 
deserving  of  careful  attention  at  the  hands  of 
the  Amateur  Photographer,  as  he  is  not  re- 
stricted in  his  work  by  the  demands  of  a  some- 
times vulgar  public.  This  process  gives 
black  and  brown  prints,  devoid  of  gloss  or 
luster,  resembling  in  its  fine  effects  the  richest 
engravings.  Plain,  chemically  pure  photo- 
graphic paper,  saturated  with  a  solution  of 
Ammonium  Chloride,  is  sensitized  with  Ni- 
trate of  Silver,  the  two  chemicals  uniting  in 
the  substance  of  the  paper  to  form  the  light- 
sensitive  Silver  Chloride. 

Albumenized  Paper  is  similar  to  the  Salted 
Paper,  except  that  instead  of  being  "  salted  " 
with  a  solution  of  Ammonium  Chloride  in  wa- 
ter, the  surface  of  the  paper  is  covered  with  a 
coating  of  Albumen  or  white  of  egg,  in  which 
the  salt  has  been  thoroughly  incorporated. 
This  paper  is  also  sensitized  by  contact  with  a 
Nitrate  of  Silver  bath,  but  here  the  silver  com- 


go 


The  Photographic 


bines  not  only  with  the  salt  to  form  a  silver 
chloride,  but  also  with  the  albumen  to  form 
an  organic  albuminate  of  silver,  which  is 
itself  light-sensitive,  and  assists  in  the  pro- 
duction of  the  picture.  The  sensitive  film 
being  on  the  surface  of  the  paper,  and  having 
a  transparent  depth,  gives  to  the  picture  a 
depth  and  brilliancy  impossible  with  the  plain 
Salted  Paper.  Albumen  Paper  gives  black, 
brown  and  sepia  tones. 

Aristotype  Papers  are  similar  to  the  Albu- 
men Paper,  except  that  they  are  coated  with 
an  emulsion  of  Silver  Chloride  in  either  Gela- 
tine or  Collodion.  The  Silver  Chloride  in 
this  case  being  formed  in  the  emulsion  first, 
and  the  paper  then  coated  with  the  sensitive 
emulsion,  while  in  the  "  Salted  "  and  "Albu- 
men "  paper  a  double  coating  is  necessary, 
the  paper  being  treated  first  with  the  Salting 
Solution  and  then  with  the  Silver  Solution, 
the  Silver  Chloride  being  formed  in  the  film 
during  the  second  coating.  The  Aristotype 
Papers  claim  superiority  because  of  their  ex- 
tremely high  gloss,  their  long-keeping  quali- 
ties before  use,  and  that  they  may  be  bought 
ready  prepared  for  the  printing-frame.  These 
advantages  are  offset  in  the  opinion  of  many 
by  the  lack  of  artistic  effect,  due  to  the  high 
gloss,  and  the  harsh,  chalky  tones  as  com- 
pared with  Albumen  Papers. 


Primer:   The  Printing. 


9i 


The  Bromide  Papers  differ  from  the  other 
Silver  Papers  in  their  sensitiveness  to  light, 
the  black  and  sepia  tones  obtained,  and  the 
methods  of  developing,  the  picture  not  being 
visible  during  the  process  of  printing.  In 
this  class  of  papers  the  light  action  is  pro- 
duced by  employing  a  Bromide  of  Silver  and 
not  a  Chloride.  In  these  features  they  re- 
semble the  dry-plate,  and,  in  fact,  the  chemi- 
cals and  chemical  action  obtained  is  the  same 
as  in  the  production  of  the  negative,  the  sen- 
sitive emulsion  being  spread  upon  paper  in- 
stead of  glass. 

Platinum  Prints  are  made,  as  the  name 
implies,  with  the  Salts  of  Platinum  in  place  of 
Silver.  The  softness  of  these  prints  goes  be- 
yond the  finest  photogravures,  and  they  are 
probably  the  most  beautiful  of  all  photo- 
graphic reproductions.  The  prints  have  no 
gloss,  and  the  tones  vary  from  a  beautiful  gray 
to  a  rich,  velvety  black. 

Blue  Prints  are  made  on  paper  coated 
with  an  Iron  Solution.  They  are  extremely 
beautiful  if  properly  made,  and  possess  great 
artistic  merit,  the  bad  repute  into  which  they 
at  one  time  fell  being  due  to  improper  coat- 
ing of  the  paper  and  careless  manipulation 
on  the  part  of  the  operator.  Apparently 
the  easiest  to  handle  of  all  photographic 
papers,  every  tyro  in  the  art  of  printing  felt 


CJ2 


The  Photographic 


himself  to  be  above  instruction,  and  licensed 
to  the  most  careless  and  slovenly  manipula- 
tion. Feeling  himself  a  past  master  in  the 
art  of  blue  printing,  the  paper  was  invariably 
blamed  for  every  defect,  and  any  sugges- 
tion that  the  negative  or  the  operator  was  at 
fault  met  with  the  universal  comment,  "Do 
you  suppose  I  don't  know  how  to  make  a 
blue  print  ?  ' '  Well,  usually  he  didn' t  !  This 
paper  renders  faithfully  every  gradation  of  the 
negative,  and  is  remarkably  rich  in  soft  and 
delicate  definition,  the  color  of  the  print  being 
a  rich  Prussian  blue  with  beautiful  china- 
white  high-lights. 

Before  describing  the  work  of  printing  a 
photograph,  we  will  say  a  word  regarding  the 
apparatus,  and  refer  to  some  of  the  opera- 
tions and  the  reasons  for  performing  them. 

The  Printing-Room  should  have  a  southern 
exposure,  and  from  the  window  of  the  room 
should  project  a  shelf  for  holding  the  printing 
frames.  This  shelf  ought  to  be  provided  with 
supports  for  holding  the  frames  at  such  an 
angle  that  the  light  can  fall  in  parallel  rays 
on  the  negative,  so  that  the  edge  of  the  frame 
may  cast  no  shadow  on  the  picture.  Blocks  of 
wood  against  which  the  frames  may  lean  will 
answer  the  purpose.  The  window  may  have 
a  curtain,  or  the  room  be  divided  off,  to  enable 
the  operator  to  load  and  unload  his  frames 


Primer:   The  Printing. 


93 


and  examine  his  prints  in  subdued  light. 
Running  water  is  an  absolute  necessity,  if  any 
amount  of  work  is  to  be  done  and  good 
results  desired.  A  keg  with  a  faucet  and  a 
lined  box  for  a  sink  will  answer,  where  run- 
ning water  is  unobtainable.  Empty  dry- 
plate  boxes  or  similar  receptacles  are  useful 
for  holding  the  sheets  of  paper  before  and 
after  exposure.  The  printing-room  should 
be  supplied  with  tables  and  shelving  for  bot- 
tles, chemicals  and  apparatus.  Four  trays 
are  necessary;  those  of  hard  rubber  are  best. 
One  for  "  silvering,"  one  for  washing  the 
prints,  another  for  "fixing,"  and  a  fourth  for 
the  final  washing.  The  tray  for  silvering 
should  be  at  least  10  x  12  inches  in  dimensions 
— the  professional  usually  uses  20  x  24.  The 
object  is  to  silver  as  large  a  sheet  as  possible 
at  one  time  and  cut  into  smaller  sizes  when 
dry.  Of  course,  the  larger  the  tray  the  more 
bath  must  be  used,  and  as  the  first  expense 
in  making  up  the  silver  bath  is  considerable, 
this  must  influence  the  amateur  in  the  size 
selected.  The  "toning"  may  be  done  in  the 
tray  used  for  the  first  washing,  and  likewise  the 
fixing  and  final  washing  of  the  prints  may  be 
carried  on  in  the  trays  used  for  fixing  and 
washing  the  negatives.  It  must  be  distinctly 
borne  in  mind  that  the  trays  used  for  silver- 
ing, preliminary  washing,  and  toning  must 


94 


The  Photographic 


never  come  in  contact  with  the  Hypo  or  fixing 
solutions,  and  prints,  after  being  in  the  fixing 
solution,  must  not  be  placed  in  these  trays. 
The  same  care  should  be  used  with  the  fingers 
in  working  with  the  prints.  After  the  hands 
have  been  in  the  fixing  solution  or  in  the  last 
wash  water,  they  must  be  washed  before  again 
handling  the  silver  or  toning  trays  or  solution. 

A  Fuming-Closet  or  Box  can,  for  the  first 
experiment,  be  a  very  simple  affair,  and  a 
suitable  contrivance  will  readily  suggest  itself, 
but  for  a  permanent  fixture  the  following  may 
be  used,  the  dimensions  varying  according  to 
the  size  and  number  of  sheets  you  expect  to 
handle.  Take  a  tight  box  two  inches  wider 
inside  than  the  narrowest  measurement  of 
your  sheet  of  paper,  and  about  eight  inches 
higher  than  the  longest  way  of  the  sheet,  and 
to  the  front  of  the  box  hinge  a  door  to  open 
like  a  closet.  Four  inches  from  the  real  bot- 
tom have  a  false  bottom,  perforated  with  holes 
one-eighth  inch  in  diameter  and  about  one 
inch  apart.  One  inch  below  the  top,  on  the 
inside,  tack  to  each  side  of  the  closet  a  strip 
to  act  as  ledges  on  which  to  hang  cross 
strips  which  hold  the  paper  to  be  fumed. 
Now,  after  the  paper  is  silvered  and  thorough- 
ly dry,  it  may  be  fastened  by  pins  to  strips  of 
wood,  and  these  slats,  with  the  paper  hanging 
straight  down  from  them,  are  slid  in  one  after 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


95 


the  other  on  the  ledges  in  the  fuming-box. 
On  the  real  bottom  of  the  box  a  saucer  filled 
with  one  or  two  ounces  of  the  strongest 
Ammonia — not  Aqua  or  Household  Ammonia 
— is  placed,  and  the  door  closed.  The  fumes 
arising  will  strike  the  perforated  bottom  and 
being  thus  evenly  distributed  will  pass  through 
to  the  upper  section  and  come  in  contact  with 
every  part  of  the  hanging  sheets  of  paper. 
The  use  and  need  of  the  fuming-box  will  be 
described  under  its  proper  heading. 

The  Printing-Frame  can  be  described 
easily  by  comparing  it  to  a  heavy  picture 
frame  with  a  ledge  for  holding  the  glass  or 
negative,  a  perfectly  flat  and  substantial 
wooden  back  which  is  in  two  sections,  hinged 
together,  and  removable  from  the  frame. 
Pivoted  in  the  center  of  each  section  is  a 
curved  brass  spring,  which,  when  the  back  is 
in  position,  swings  around  and  fastens  under 
catches  on  the  sides  of  the  frame,  thus  hold- 
ing the  back  in  place  and  bringing  pressure 
to  bear  on  the  negative.  A  felt  pad  is  placed 
between  the  negative  and  back  of  frame  to 
make  the  pressure  more  uniform  and  secure 
perfect  contact  between  the  negative  and 
sensitive  paper.  We  do  not  advise  any 
amateur  to  make  his  own  frames,  as  they  are 
offered  in  great  variety,  at  very  low  prices,  by 
the  various  stock  houses.    When  using  one 


96 


The  Photographic 


frame  for  printing  negatives  of  various  sizes, 
a  sheet  of  glass  being  first  placed  in  the  frame, 
the  negative  may  be  centered  on  this,  but  it  is 
best  to  have  different  sizes  of  frames  to  cor- 
respond with  the  negatives,  as  the  uneven 
surface  of  the  glass  and  the  additional  pres- 
sure may  cause  the  negatives  to  crack.  The 
back  of  the  frame  is  made  in  two  sections,  to 
allow  of  inspection  of  the  paper  during  the 
process  of  printing,  as  one  section,  with  the 
spring  caught  under  the  catches,  holds  the 
negative  and  paper  from  shifting  while  the 
other  is  raised. 

A  Dampening  Box  is  useful  for  moistening 
albumen  and  plain  paper  before  it  is  silvered. 
If  you  attempt  to  float  a  dry  sheet  of  paper 
on  the  silver  bath  it  will  curl  up  and  be  un- 
manageable, and  the  sheet  will  not  absorb 
the  silver  evenly.  To  avoid  this  the  paper 
is  slightly  dampened  before  silvering,  but  as 
this  cannot  be  done  by  wetting  the  paper, 
which  would  spoil  its  surface,  it  is  accom- 
plished by  keeping  it  for  24  hours  in  a 
moist  atmosphere.  The  box  is  made  as  fol- 
lows :  Take  a  tight  box  three  inches  larger 
in  width  and  length  than  your  paper,  and  six 
inches  deep.  Tack  a  strip  to  each  of  its  long 
sides  two  inches  from  the  top  on  the  inside  ; 
make  a  lid  with  lips  to  come  down  over  the 
outside  of  the  box  and  act  as  a  cover  \  secure 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


97 


bottom  and  top  well  with  battens  to  prevent 
warping,  or  line  the  box  with  painted  tin. 
Across  the  strips  mentioned  lay  slats  about 
two  or  three  inches  apart.  In  using  the  box, 
place  two  clean  blotters,  chemically  pure,  on 
the  bottom,  and  on  these  lay  the  albumen  or 
plain  salted  paper,  placing  on  top  of  it  two 
more  blotters.  Four  to  six  blotters,  which 
have  been  thoroughly  saturated  with  water, 
but  are  not  dripping,  are  to  be  laid  on  the  slats 
and  the  lid  of  the  box  put  on.  The  paper 
will  be  found  nice  and  limp  when  needed  for 
silvering,  but  it  must  not  be  kept  in  the  box 
many  days,  or  it  will  mildew. 

The  Silver  Bath  in  its  simplest  form  is  made 
by  dissolving  chemically  pure  Nitrate  of  Silver 
in  distilled  water,  the  average  strength  being 
50  grains  to  the  ounce.  The  bath  may  vary 
within  the  limits  of  30  and  80  grains  of 
silver  to  the  ounce  of  water.  Some  operators 
add  other  substances  to  the  bath  for  various 
reasons,  and  with  some  special  papers  this 
has  advantages,  but  for  our  purpose  it  is 
unnecessary,  and  we  shall  adhere  to  the  sim- 
ple formula  here  given  : 

Nitrate  of  Silver  (c.  p.)   60  grains 

Distilled  Water  1  ounce 

Dissolve  and  keep  in  a  glass  stoppered  bot- 
tle, in  bright  daylight.  After  using  the  silver 
bath  a  few  times  it  will  often  be  found  to  turn 


98 


The  Photographic 


red,  and  cause  dirty  brown  streaks  to  appear 
on  the  paper.  This  is  caused  by  the  organic 
matter  which  is  dissolved  from  the  paper  and 
carried  into  the  bath,  and  when  it  is  in  this 
condition  it  is  not  fit  for  use.  The  object  in 
keeping  the  bottle  in  bright  light  when  not  in 
use  is  that  the  albuminate  and  chloride  of 
silver  held  in  suspension  may  be  acted  on  by 
the  light  and  precipitated  to  the  bottom  ;  care, 
of  course,  must  be  used  to  filter  out  the  pre- 
cipitate before  use.  After  a  time,  however, 
even  this  precaution  will  not  be  sufficient,  and 
it  will  be  necessary  to  clear  the  bath.  A  sim- 
ple and  very  effective  method  is  to  add  to  each 
pint  of  silver  solution  an  ounce,  or  more  if 
necessary,  of  Kaolin — White  China  Clay — 
and  shake  up  thoroughly  and  pour  into  a 
filter.  If  the  first  part  runs  through  cloudy, 
pour  this  back  into  the  funnel  and  refilter  it 
until  it  comes  through  clear  and  sparkling. 
Of  course,  a  clean  bottle  must  be  used. 
When  filtered,  the  bath  is  again  ready  for 
use.  After  repeated  use  fresh  Nitrate  of  Sil- 
ver should  be  added  to  keep  the  bath  up  to 
strength,  as  every  sheet  of  paper  floated  robs 
the  solution  of  some  of  its  silver.  A  lump  of 
Silver  Carbonate,  kept  in  the  bottom  of  the 
bath,  preserves  its  neutrality.  The  free  nitric 
acid  in  the  used  bath  combines  with  the  Sil- 
ver Carbonate  to  form  fresh  Silver  Nitrate. 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


99 


The  Toning-Bath  for  the  Salted,  Albumen 
and  Aristo  papers  is  a  solution  of  Chloride  of 
Gold  and  other  chemicals,  to  be  mentioned  in 
each  formula,  in  water.  It  is  a  well-known  fact 
that  if  a  print  on  any  of  the  above  papers  be 
" fixed"  without  any  intermediate  process,  it 
will  have  a  disagreeable  red  tone,  and  lack  all 
of  the  beautiful  qualities  we  are  accustomed 
to  expect  in  a  photograph.  The  necessary 
intermediate  process  is  that  of  toning,  in 
which  a  layer  of  Gold  is  deposited  on  the 
image  of  silver  formed  during  the  printing. 
The  print  may  be  said  to  be  "plated"  with 
Gold.  The  object  of  adding  other  chemicals 
to  the  bath  is  to  bring  about  an  alkaline  reac- 
tion and  regulate  the  "speed"  of  the  bath. 
The  tone  of  the  print  depends  on  the  rapidity 
with  which  the  deposit  of  Gold  takes  place. 
If  the  action  be  slow  and  the  Gold  deposited 
in  very  fine  crystals,  the  resulting  image  will 
have  a  ruby  color,  while  a  rapid  action  causes 
the  Gold  to  precipitate  in  larger  crystals  and 
produces  a  blue  or  purplish  color.  The 
Chloride  of  Gold  is  best  purchased  in  tubes 
containing  15  grains  each,  and  the  con- 
tents of  this  tube  immediately  added  to  15 
ounces  of  distilled  water  contained  in  a  glass 
stoppered  bottle.  This  makes  it  more  conve- 
nient for  measuring,  as  each  ounce  of  water 


IOO 


The  Photographic 


will  represent,  approximately,  one  grain  of 
Gold. 

With  these  preliminary  remarks,  we  will 
leave  the  subject,  to  resume  it  again  when 
treating  of  the  operation  of  toning,  at  which 
time  a  few  formulae  will  be  given. 

The  Fixing-Bath  is  made  by  dissolving 
one  ounce  of  Hyposulphite  of  Soda  in  six 
ounces  of  ordinary  water.  This  solution  de- 
composes readily,  and  should  be  mixed  fresh 
for  each  day's  work,  and  not  used  over  again. 
Remember  that  all  vessels  used  for  holding 
the  fixing  solution  must  not  be  used  for  any- 
thing else. 

For  our  first  experiments  in  printing  we  will 
begin,  as  did  the  i(  Fathers  of  Photography," 
with 

Salted  Paper  :  Obtain  from  your  stock 
house  a  few  sheets  of  the  Rives  Plain  Photo- 
graphic Paper,  having  a  smooth  surface  and 
measuring  18x22  inches.  Examine  the  two 
sides  of  the  sheet  carefully,  and  you  will  see 
that  one  is  smooth  and  possessed  of  a  beauti- 
ful finish,  while  the  other  is  very  slightly 
"pitted"  as  if  it  had  lain  while  moist  on  a 
fine  wire  cloth.  The  smooth  side  is  the  right 
side  to  coat.  Mark  this  so  that  you  will  know 
it  at  a  glance.  Place  this  paper  in  your 
dampening  box  for  24  hours ;  when  ready 
for  use,  prepare  a  sufficient  quantity  of  the 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


101 


following  salting  solution  to  well  fill  your 
tray: 

Ammonium  Chloride  (pure)  ....  8  grains 
Distilled  Water  i  ounce 

After  pouring  this  solution  into  your  tray, 
take  a  strip  of  clean  paper  and  skim  the  top, 
to  remove  all  dust  and  dirt.  Now  lift  a  sheet 
of  paper  from  your  dampening  box  and,  tak- 
ing it  by  two  diagonal  corners,  bring  the 
hands  close  together ;  holding  the  sheet 
over  the  tray,  allow  one  of  the  free  corners 
to  touch  the  solution,  gradually  lowering  the 
sheet,  spreading  the  hands  apart  as  you  do 
so,  until  its  whole  surface  is  in  contact  with, 
and  floating  on,  the  bath.  If  it  shows  a  ten- 
dency to  curl  up,  breathe  slightly  on  it — do 
not  blow — and  the  moisture  of  the  breath  will 
cause  it  to  uncurl  and  lie  flat  ;  if  it  curls 
badly  it  has  not  been  dampened  properly,  and 
needs  a  longer  time  in  the  dampening  box. 
Now,  supposing  the  sheet  to  be  resting  on  the 
solution,  lift  it  carefully,  first  by  one  corner, 
inspecting  the  under  surface  to  see  that  no 
air-bells  are  formed ;  after  looking  at  this, 
try  the  other  corners,  till  you  get  a  view  of 
the  whole  sheet.  If  any  air-bells  are  present, 
break  them  with  a  glass  rod  or  stick  kept  for 
that  purpose,  and  allow  the  sheet  to  again 
rest  on  the  solution.  If  the  air-bells  are  not 
broken,  the  paper  will  absorb  no  solution  in 


102 


The  Photographic 


these  places,  and  they  will  show  as  white 
spots  in  the  photograph.  After  the  paper  has 
remained  in  contact  with  the  solution  for 
three  minutes,  it  is  raised  by  taking  hold  of 
one  corner  of  the  sheet,  and  slowly  and 
steadily  lifted  until  another  corner  is  free, 
when  this  is  also  grasped,  and  the  whole  sheet 
raised  with  a  slow,  uninterrupted  motion ;  it 
is  then  hung  by  clips  on  a  line  to  dry,  the  end 
leaving  the  solution  last  being  always  kept  the 
lower,  while  a  strip  of  blotting  paper  attached 
to  the  lower  end  absorbs  the  moisture  drain- 
ing to  the  bottom,  and  assists  in  uniform  dry- 
ing. Follow  with  another  sheet,  and  so  on, 
till  all  are  salted.  After  the  paper  is  thor- 
oughly dry  it  may  be  stored  away  until  needed, 
as  it  keeps  perfectly. 

These  manipulations  have  been  given  with 
considerable  detail,  and  as  they  apply  as  well 
to  the  silvering  of  the  paper,  it  will  not  be 
necessary  to  repeat  them  fully.  The  Salting 
of  the  paper  may  also  be  accomplished  by 
immersing  it  in  the  solution,  one  sheet  after 
another,  avoiding  air  bells,  and  allowing  six 
or  eight  sheets  to  lie  in  the  solution  for  five 
to  ten  minutes.  This  is  more  apt  to  spoil 
the  surface  of  the  paper,  however,  and  is  not 
as  instructive,  as  practice  in  salting  is  valua- 
ble experience  in  silvering,  which  must  of 
necessity  be  done  by  floating  and  not  by  im- 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


mersion.  Those  who  prefer  to  buy  their 
paper  ready  salted  will  find  a  brand  on  the 
market,  under  the  name  of  "Clemons  Plain 
Salted  Paper,"  which  is  thoroughly  reliable, 
Mr.  John  R.  Clemons,  the  manufacturer, 
being  one  of  the  pioneers  in  photography. 
Many  advise  the  addition  of  gelatine  to  the 
salting  solution,  but  the  writers  can  say  from 
experience  that  unless  it  is  present  in  large 
quantities  it  is  valueless,  and  if  present  in 
quantity  the  amateur  will  find  it  impossible 
to  salt  evenly,  as  the  solution  collects  in 
94 tears"  while  drying,  and  to  coat  perfectly 
with  this  heavy  solution  a  special  machine 
is  necessary ;  therefore  we  confidently  advise 
the  simple  formula  given. 

Having  salted  and  dried  our  paper,  we 
place  it  in  the  dampening  box  preparatory  to 
silvering.  When  ready,  we  prepare  our  sil- 
ver bath  as  already  given,  and,  pouring  the 
solution  into  the  silvering  tray,  which  has 
been  placed  in  the  dark-room,  or  a  room 
lighted  by  artificial  light,  we  skim  off  the 
surface  to  remove  dust  and  dirt,  and  prepare 

To  Silver  the  Paper.  Taking  the  sheets 
one  at  a  time  from  the  dampening  box,  we 
float  each  in  turn  on  the  silver  bath  as  de- 
scribed in  * '  Salting,"  being  careful,  of  course, 
to  have  the  right  side  or  salted  surface  in  con- 
tact with  the  solution.    Examine  carefully  for 


The  Photographic 


air-bells,  and  allow  the  sheet  to  float  for  about 
two  minutes ;  then  lift  it  slowly  and  steadily, 
and  fasten  on  a  line  to  dry,  as  previously 
described.  The  room  in  which  the  sheets 
are  hung  must  be  free  from  all  daylight,  and 
warm  and  dry,  to  hasten  drying.  If  the  room 
is  damp  and  the  drying  unduly  prolonged, 
the  prints  will  be  flat  and  lacking  in  bril- 
liancy, as  the  solution  will  sink  into  the  paper. 
The  amateur  will  find  it  convenient  to  silver 
his  paper  in  the  evening,  and,  after  thorough 
drying,  put  it  away  for  use  the  following  day, 
but  it  does  not  keep  well  more  than  one  or 
two  days.  It  is  preserved  best  under  pres- 
sure in  a  printing-frame,  with  a  sheet  of  dry 
blotter  on  each  side  of  the  package.  Of 
course,  to  keep  it  in  a  frame  it  is  necessary 
to  cut  the  sheets  to  the  small  sizes ;  the  only 
drawback  to  this  is  the  extra  trouble  of  fum- 
ing small  pieces  instead  of  the  large  sheets, 
but  this  is  not  a  serious  obstacle.  The  paper 
must  be  fumed  just  before  printing,  as  it 
turns  yellow  and  spoils  rapidly  after  fuming. 
Having  prepared  our  paper  and  dried  it  thor- 
oughly, we  place  it  in  the  fuming  box  for 
15  minutes  and  fume  with  strong  Ammonia. 
This  is  done  because  an  acid  reaction  in 
the  paper  interferes  with  the  printing  and 
toning.  Fuming  counteracts  any  acidity,  and 
gives  to  the  paper  a  certain  degree  of  mois- 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


105 


ture.  In  printing  the  image,  the  light  acts 
on  the  Silver  Chloride  and  reduces  it  to  the 
Sub-Chloride,  at  the  same  time  liberating 
Chlorine.  If  the  Chlorine  thus  liberated  has 
no  chemical  with  which  it  can  combine,  it 
attacks  the  print  and  causes  it  to  darken  in 
spots.  But  when  the  paper  has  been  fumed 
with  Ammonia  the  liberated  Chlorine  com- 
bines with  the  Ammonia  to  form  Ammonium 
Chloride,  a  harmless  product.  The  paper  is 
removed  from  the  fuming  box,  and,  still  care- 
fully guarded  from  light,  is  cut  to  the  required 
size.  The  small  sheets  are  now  placed  in  a 
dry-plate  box  or  any  suitable  receptacle,  and 
carried  to  the  printing  room.  Selecting  our 
negative,  we  dust  it  off  carefully  and  place  it 
in  the  printing-frame  with  the  film  side 
upward  or  inward  in  the  frame ;  on  this  lay  a 
sheet  of  the  plain  silver  paper,  placing  the 
coated  or  sensitive  side  in  contact  with  the 
film  of  the  negative ;  on  the  paper  a  felt  pad 
or  sheet  of  blotting  or  soft  paper,  and  over  all 
lay  the  back  and  fasten  firmly  in  place.  Now 
turn  the  frame  over,  see  that  no  dust  is  on 
the  surface  of  the  glass,  and  that  the  paper 
is  not  creased  or  folded,  and  put  it  on  the 
printing  shelf,  resting  against  a  block  so  that 
the  surface  of  the  negative  receives  the  light 
in  direct  rays,  to  avoid  casting  shadows  on 
the  paper  from  the  raised  edge  of  the  frame. 


io6 


The  Photographic 


Whether  we  put  the  frame  in  direct  sunlight 
or  bright  diffused  light  will  depend  on  the 
quality  of  our  negative.  If  the  negative  is 
very  thin  or  of  moderate  density,  it  is  best  to 
have  it  looking  away  from  the  sun  toward 
the  clear  sky,  as  it  will  print  more  slowly  and 
evenly,  but  dense  negatives  had  best  be 
printed  in  direct  sunlight.  Having  allowed 
the  picture  to  print  a  few  minutes,  we  take 
up  the  frame  and,  stepping  back  from  the 
window  into  the  subdued  light,  unfasten  one 
spring,  and,  raising  that  end  of  the  back 
board,  lift  the  paper  and  inspect  the  print. 
If  all  has  gone  well,  the  picture  will  stand 
out  clearly  and  distinctly  in  beautiful  bluish- 
black  colors,  but  it  is  necessary  to  carry  the 
printing  process  beyond  what  would  seem 
right,  as  subsequent  operations  tend  to  reduce 
the  intensity  of  the  print.  No  definite  rule 
can  be  given  for  printing,  as  every  negative  is 
a  law  unto  itself,  but  in  a  general  way,  Salted 
Paper  should  be  printed  until  the  shadows 
are  very  dark,  the  fine  detail  begins  to  be 
lost  and  the  high-lights  lose  their  white  color, 
becoming  slightly  tinted.  The  latitude  to  be 
allowed  in  this  and  all  the  processes  must 
be  learned  by  experience,  as  it  cannot  be 
described  in  words. 

Our  print,  being  judged  sufficiently  strong, 
is  removed  from  the  frame,  and,  carefully 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


107 


guarded  from  light,  is  slipped  into  an  old  dry- 
plate  box  or  some  suitable  receptacle  until 
all  the  negatives  for  the  day  have  been  printed. 
If  on  inspecting  the  print  we  find  that  one 
part  of  it  has  printed  too  dark  and  other 
parts  not  enough,  we  must  "doctor"  the 
negative  so  that  the  thin  parts  can  be  held 
back,  and  print  more  slowly.  This  is  done 
with  tissue  paper  usually,  or  it  may  be  accom- 
plished by  "reducing"  the  dense  part  of  the 
negative,  as  described  in  another  chapter  of 
the  book.  Or  again,  if  only  one  section,  as  a 
corner,  is  too  thin,  it  can  be  shaded  by  hold- 
ing a  piece  of  paper  or  card  board  above  the 
frame  to  cast  a  shadow  on  the  thin  portion, 
moving  the  card  board  constantly,  so  that  no 
sharp  line  of  shadow  will  show  on  the  print. 
If  the  tissue  paper  is  used,  the  following  is  a 
simple  method  :  Moisten  a  piece  of  tissue  or 
tracing  paper,  and  paste  it  to  the  glass  side  of 
the  negative;  hold  it  up  to  the  light,  and  with 
a  pencil  trace  out  the  parts  which  print  too 
darky  then  with  a  sharp  knife  cut  away  the 
balance.  This  will  be  apt  to  show  a  distinct 
line  if  printed  in  a  bright  light ;  to  avoid  it, 
place  a  second  piece  of  tissue  paper  over  the 
front  of  the  frame,  so  that  it  stands  away  from 
the  negative  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch,  and 
this  will  produce  a  soft,  diffused  light.  A  little 
crayon  or  black  lead  may  be  rubbed  into  the 


io8 


The  Photographic 


tissue  which  is  pasted  on  the  negative,  if  some 
parts  still  print  too  rapidly.  It  pays  to 
" doctor"  a  good  negative,  but  a  poor  one 
had  best  be  thrown  away,  and  another  ex- 
posure made. 

To  return  to  our  prints,  which  are  ready  for 
Toning.     Take  a  clean  tray,  free  from 
Hypo,  and  place  in  it  a  sufficient  quantity 
of  the  following  solution  : 

Citrate  of  Soda  3  grains 

Distilled  Water  1  ounce 

Put  the  prints  in  this  solution,  one  by  one, 

seeing  that  no  two  stick  together,  and  allow 

them  to  soak  for  fully  five  minutes,  rocking 

the  tray  occasionally.    Pour  off  this  solution 

and  discard  it,  as  it  will  not  answer*  for  future 

use ;   now  wash  the  prints  thoroughly  by 

frequent  changes  of   water  for  20  minutes 

(which  can  be  done  in  the  same  tray),  and 

after  all  the  free  silver  is  eliminated,  place 

the  prints  in  the  toning  bath,  which  has  been 

freshly  prepared  by  the  following  formula  : 

Gold  1  grain 


The  Gold  is  measured  by  taking  one  ounce 
of  the  " stock"  solution  of  Gold  previously 
mentioned.  Test  the  alkalinity  of  the  bath 
by  placing  in  it  a  strip  of  red  litmus  paper, 
which  it  should  turn  blue ;  if  the  paper  is  not 


Water  

Table  Salt  .... 
Carbonate  of  Soda 


24  ounces 
5  grains 
5  grains 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


iog 


turned  blue,  add  sufficient  Carbonate  of  Soda 
to  accomplish  this.  This  bath  does  not  keep, 
and  must  be  prepared  each  time.  The  prints 
should  be  kept  face  up  in  the  bath  and  the 
tray  rocked  by  placing  under  it  a  stick  or 
pencil  and  "see-sawing"  it.  Occasionally 
change  the  prints  so  that  those  on  the  bottom 
will  come  on  top,  and  see  that  all  are  under 
the  solution.  The  toning  may  be  carried  on 
by  daylight  or  lamplight,  but  if  in  daylight, 
they  must  be  handled  in  subdued  light,  say  on 
the  opposite  side  of  the  room  from  the  win- 
dow, and  it  is  well  to  begin  by  toning  but  a 
few  prints  at  a  time,  as  it  is  awkward  for  the 
beginner  to  manage  many  at  once.  After  an 
immersion  of  a  few  minutes  the  prints  will  be 
seen  to  change  color  to  a  sepia  or  else  a  pur- 
plish blue  tone.  To  test  the  completion  of  the 
process,  the  prints  are  lifted  from  the  bath 
from  time  to  time  and  examined  by  transmitted 
light — by  looking  through  them  at  the  bright 
light.  When  the  fine  detail  or  delicate  por- 
tions begin  to  show  a  bluish  color,  the  process 
may  be  stopped  by  throwing  the  prints  into 
a  pan  of  clean,  fresh  water,  if  sepia  or  light 
brown  tones  are  desired,  but  for  blue-black 
tones,  the  process  must  be  continued  until  the 
denser  detail  also  shows  blue  by  transmitted 
light.  Red  spots  in  the  prints  are  caused  by 
finger  marks,  the  gold  refusing  to  deposit 


no 


The  Photographic 


where  the  perspiration  from  the  hands  has 
left  a  greasy  film;  handling  the  prints  with 
wet  fingers  will  avoid  this.  As  some  prints 
tone  more  rapidly  than  others,  each  one 
must  be  removed  from  the  bath  and  placed 
in  a  pan  of  water  when  it  is  considered  right, 
and  all  not  toned  for  the  same  length  of  time. 
Having  placed  all  the  prints  in  water,  they 
are  washed  for  five  minutes,  with  two  or 
three  changes,  and  transferred  to  the 

Fixing-Bath,  which  has  been  freshly  pre- 
pared. In  this  they  remain  for  20  min- 
utes, being  frequently  moved  about,  that  the 
solution  may  come  in  contact  with  all.  The 
fixing-bath  consists  of 

Hyposulphite  of  Soda  1  ounce 

Water  (ordinary)  6  ounces 

Be  careful  not  to  dabble  your  hands  in  the 
fixing-bath  and  then  in  any  of  the  other  solu- 
tions or  trays,  and  keep  the  fixing  tray  sepa- 
rate from  the  others,  both  while  in  use  and 
out  of  use.  After  fixing  for  the  proper  length 
of  time,  the  prints  are  placed  in  clean  running 
water  and  washed  thoroughly  for  about  three 
hours.  It  is  also  an  advantage  during  the 
washing  to  place  the  prints  one  at  a  time  on 
a  glass  slab  and  gently  sponge  both  surfaces, 
then  throwing  them  back  in  the  wash  water. 
When  thoroughly  washed,  the  prints  are  ready 
to  dry  ;  this  may  be  done  by  hanging  on  a 


Primer:   The  Printing, 


in 


line  like  a  small  "wash,"  or  placing  between 
blotters.  The  latter  method  is  apt  to  cause 
trouble  if  the  blotters  are  not  chemically  pure. 

Prints  on  Plain  Silver  Paper,  if  made 
according  to  directions,  afford  fine  opportuni- 
ties for  coloring,  and  if  water  color  paper  be 
used,  the  finished  result  can  scarcely  be  told 
from  a  genuine  water-color  picture.  For 
those  possessing  aptness  in  the  coloring  line, 
this  is  a  fascinating  branch  of  photography, 
as  nothing  enters  into  the  coating  of  the 
paper  which  can  in  any  way  change  the  sur- 
face of  it.  The  colors  can  be  applied  as  easily 
as  to  plain  water-color  paper,  making  in  the 
finished  print  an  artistic  effect  hardly  possible 
with  the  gelatine-coated  Bromide  Papers 
which  are  so  often  used  for  this  work. 

Some  of  the  most  artistic  prints  which  the 
authors  have  ever  made  were  printed  on  heavy 
rough  surfaced  water-color  paper,  the  surface 
resembling  canvas  in  its  appearance.  These 
prints  are  beautiful,  whether  colored  or  not, 
and  are  specially  adapted  to  large,  bold  work. 
The  paper  may  be  purchased  of  any  artists' 
material  house,  and  is  salted  best  by  immer- 
sion in  the  salting  bath,  the  sheet  being  first 
sponged  with  distilled  water  in  place  of  uskig 
the  dampening  box. 

After  salting  and  drying,  it  is  silvered  by 
tacking  it  to  a  board  and  applying  the  silver 


112 


The  Photographic 


solution  with  the  aid  of  a  camel's  hair  brush 
three  or  four  inches  wide  and  bound  in  rub- 
ber. The  paper  is  first  stroked  lengthwise 
and  then  across,  the  operator  making  sure 
that  every  part  is  thoroughly  covered  with 
the  silver  solution.  If  the  paper  refuses  to 
take  the  silver,  it  may  be  dampened  first. 
The  " Three  Crown"  toning  bath  given  under 
Albumen  Paper  Prints  gives  beautiful  effects 
with  this  heavy  paper,  but  it  must  be  borne 
in  mind  that  strong,  vigorous  negatives  are 
better  adapted  to  the  plain  salted  papers 
than  are  weak  ones.  A  silver  bath  for  Salted 
Paper,  giving  good  results  without  fuming, 
is  made  as  follows  : 

Nitrate  of  Silver   50  grains 

Nitrate  of  Ammonium  30  grains 

Liquid  Ammonia,  strongest.  ...  3  drops 
Distilled  Water  1  ounce 

This  bath  keeps  well,  and  only  requires  fil- 
tering before  use.  With  it  the  paper  does 
not  require  fuming,  and  it  works  equally  well 
with  Salted  or  Albumen  paper. 

Albumen  Paper.  Very  probably  no  pho- 
tographic paper  has  been  so  popular  and  so 
universally  used  as  Albumen.  This  beautiful 
paper  certainly  deserves  the  favor  to  which  it 
has  attained,  and  its  successor  has  not,  in 
the  opinion  of  the  authors,  yet  appeared. 
Albumen  prints  combine  the  artistic  beauty 
of  plain  surface  prints  with  the  richness  and 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


113 


depth  of  glossy  paper  without  any  of  the 
objectionable  features  of  the  latter  class. 
The  manipulation  is  simplicity  itself,  and  if 
carried  out  with  any  judgment  the  results 
are  uniformly  satisfactory.  The  paper  is 
handled  much  the  same  as  plain  salted  paper, 
and  is,  if  anything,  easier  to  work. 

Albumen  paper  is  found  on  the  market 
ready  coated,  the  difficulties  in  albumenizing 
being  such  as  to  limit  the  manufacturing  to  a 
few  large  firms  who  have  had  an  extensive 
experience  covering  many  years.  The  coating 
of  the  paper  consists  of  Albumen  or  white  of 
eggs,  in  which  is  incorporated  Ammonium 
Chloride.  The  Albumen  is  prepared  by  a 
special  process,  which  makes  a  clear,  limpid 
solution  free  from  all  the  stringy,  sticky  prop- 
erties so  familiar  to  us  as  characteristic  of 
white  of  egg.  As  stated  in  the  beginning  of 
this  chapter,  the  image  is  formed,  not  alone 
of  Silver  Chloride,  but  Silver  Albuminate  as 
well,  the  Nitrate  of  Silver  bath  having  a  cer- 
tain affinity  for  the  Albumen  as  well  as  the 
Ammonium  Chloride.  This,  together  with  the 
fact  that  the  coating  is  on  the  surface  of  the 
paper  and  has  an  appreciable  thickness,  al- 
lows of  deeper  printing,  which  brings  out  all 
the  detail  in  the  dense  shadows,  making  it 
clear  and  apparent  in  the  transparent  depth 
of  the  Albumen. 


ii4 


The  Photographic 


For  our  experiment  we  purchase  from  the 
stock  house  a  dozen  sheets  of  a  standard 
brand  of  Albumen  paper  and  place  them  in 
the  dampening  box  for  24  hours.  The  sheets 
are  then  floated  on  the  silver  bath,  already 
given,  for  two  to  three  minutes,  care  being 
taken  to  have  the  surface  of  the  bath  clean 
and  free  from  scum,  the  manipulation  through- 
out being  the  same  as  with  the  salted  paper, 
except  that  it  is  necessary  to  be  very  care- 
ful to  avoid  cracking  or  breaking  the  paper 
by  rough  handling,  or  spoiling  the  surface 
with  moist  fingers.  Albumen  paper  and  prints, 
when  rolled  for  carrying,  should  always  be 
rolled  with  the  Albumen  side  out,  as  the 
film  is  less  liable  to  break. 

After  silvering  and  drying,  the  sheets  are 
fumed  for  15  to  20  minutes,  cut  to  size,  and 
placed  in  a  box  and  kept  from  light.  Select- 
ing our  negative  we  expose  as  before,  but  the 
printing  is  not  carried  as  far  as  with  the  plain 
salted  paper,  it  being  sufficient  to  print  up  clear 
and  strong  and  carry  a  shade  or  two  beyond 
what  we  want  the  finished  print  to  be.  If, 
after  toning  and  fixing,  the  print  is  light  and 
has  a  washed  out,  faded  appearance,  it  has 
not  been  printed  enough  ;  if  dark  and  heavy 
looking,  the  exposure  has  been  too  long. 
When  the  day's  printing  is  finished,  the  prints 
are  placed  one  by  one  in  a  pan  of  clean  water 


Primer:  The  Printing, 


"5 


and  while  thoroughly  protected  from  light 
they  are  washed  for  20  minutes  in  several 
changes  of  water,  the  washing  continued  un- 
til the  water  runs  off  clear  and  loses  its  milky 
appearance.    They  are  then  ready  for  toning. 

We  have  at  our  disposal  many  formulae  for 
toning  baths,  all  possessing  some  peculiar 
advantage  in  the  hands  of  those  familiar  with 
them.  We  give  a  few  of  the  most  popular. 
An  excellent  bath,  and  exceedingly  simple 
withal,  is  that  of  Abney  &  Robinson  : 

Formula  No.  i  — 

Chloride  of  Gold  1  grain 


It  must  be  used  immediately  after  mixing. 
This  bath  gives  sepia  and  purplish  brown 
tones,  depending  on  the  quality  of  the  nega- 
tive and  the  depth  to  which  toning  is  carried. 

Formula  No.  2 — 

Acetate  of  Soda  1  drachm 

Gold  5  grains 


To  get  the  best  result  from  this  bath,  it 
must  be  at  least  a  week  old.  With  proper 
care  it  keeps  indefinitely.  The  tones  are  pur- 
ple or  brown,  according  to  the  length  of  time 
the  print  is  immersed. 


Carbonate  of  Soda 
Distilled  Water  . 


10  grains 
10  ounces 


Distilled  Water 


12  ounces 


n6 


The  Photographic 


Formula  No.  3 — Three  Crown  Toning  Bath. 


Solution  A. 

Powdered  Borax  150  grains 

Double-fused  Acetate  of  Soda  .  .  90  grains 

Bi-Carbonate  of  Soda  45  grains 

Distilled  Water   1  quart 

Solution  B. 

Chloride  of  Gold  15  grains 

Distilled  Water  2  ounces 


Mix  all  of  Solution  A  with  one  ounce  of 
Solution  B,  and  reserve  the  balance  to 
strengthen  the  bath  when  exhausted.  This 
bath  keeps  indefinitely,  and  only  requires  the 
addition  of  a  little  Gold  (Solution  B)  as  it 
loses  strength.  It  must  be  filtered  before  use. 
All  three  baths  here  given  are  excellent,  but 
No.  3  has  given  us  greater  satisfaction  than 
any  we  have  tried.  The  range  of  tones  pos- 
sible are  very  great,  and  if  used  in  combina- 
tion with  the  Three  Crown  brand  of  Albumen 
Paper,  the  prints  work  up  beautifully,  and 
sepia  effects  and  delicate  browns  unknown  on 
other  papers  are  the  result.  In  cold  weather 
the  toning  bath  should  be  about  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  blood.  The  prints  after  washing 
are  placed  in  one  of  the  above  baths  and  kept 
constantly  moving,  face  up.  They  are  exam- 
ined from  time  to  time  by  transmitted  light, 
and  for  sepia  tones  are  removed  as  soon  as 
the  delicate  half-tones  appear  slightly  blue. 
Dark  brown  and  purplish  black  tones  need 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


117 


further  toning,  but  if  carried  too  far  the  prints 
after  fixing  will  have  a  flat,  faded,  disagree- 
able color.  As  the  toning  is  completed  throw 
the  prints  into  a  pan  of  fresh  water  and  wash 
thoroughly,  when  they  may  be  transferred  to 
the  following  fixing-bath.  Double  fixing, 
that  is,  passing  through  two  fixing-baths  will 
insure  greater  permanency  to  the  prints  : 

Hyposulphite  of  Soda  4  ounces 

Water  1  pint 

Ammonia  (strong)  30  drops 

The  addition  of  the  ammonia  prevents  the 
blistering  of  the  film,  so  common  with  highly 
albuminous  papers.  After  the  prints  remain 
in  the  fixing  bath  for  20  minutes,  they  are 
washed  thoroughly  in  running  water  for  not 
less  than  three  hours,  and  it  is  again  sug- 
gested, as  in  printing  plain  silver  paper,  that 
the  prints  be  sponged  off  once  or  twice  during 
the  final  washing.  As  albumen  prints  have 
an  irresistible  tendency  to  curl  up  while  dry- 
ing, and  thus  crack  the  surface,  the  authors 
dry  them  between  blotters,  but  it  is  absolutely 
necessary  to  have  chemically  pure  blotters — 
obtainable  at  photo  stock  houses — and  use 
them  for  nothing  else,  being  careful  to  discard 
them  altogether  when  stained  or  soiled. 

Aristotype  Papers  are  very  popular  at  this 
time  with  many  amateurs,  but  the  authors 
have  little  to  say  in  their  favor,  except  the 
good  keeping  qualities  of  the  paper  before 


n8 


The  Photographic 


use,  its  convenience  in  being  manufactured  in 
all  the  photographic  sizes,  ready  to  use  with- 
out any  preparatory  manipulation,  and  the 
great  saving  of  time  resulting  therefrom.  For 
these  advantages  it  seems  to  us  that  artistic 
merit  and  permanency  of  results  are  sacrificed. 
We  are  not  joined  in  that  opinion,  however, 
by  many  of  the  most  prominent  photogra- 
phers, both  professional  and  amateur,  so  the 
question  must  remain  an  open  one  for  each  to 
decide  personally,  and  as  all  the  many  manu- 
facturers send  full  directions  for  working  each 
particular  brand,  it  is  not  necessary  to  go  into 
the  operations  here. 

Bromide  Papers.  A  comparatively  recent 
development  in  photographic  printing  is  the 
"  Bromide"  paper.  This  paper,  as  already 
stated,  is  coated  with  a  sensitive  emulsion  of 
silver  in  gelatine,  much  the  same  as  the  film 
used  on  the  dry-plate.  In  this  process  the 
Bromide,  in  place  of  the  Chloride  of  Silver,  is 
used  as  a  sensitive  salt,  and  as  it  is  much  more 
sensitive  to  light  than  the  former,  the  light  of 
day  is  not  necessary  in  the  production  of  the 
image  ;  in  fact,  it  cannot  be  used  ordinarily, 
as  it  is  too  intense.  The  prints  are  usually 
made  by  exposure  to  a  gas  jet  or  lamp-light 
for  one  or  more  seconds,  according  to  the 
density  of  the  negative.  The  great  disadvan- 
tage with  Bromide  paper  is  that  the  image 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


119 


is  not  visible  during  printing,  and  cannot  be 
watched  to  judge  the  exposure  ;  it  is  brought 
out  by  development  in  a  chemical  bath  after 
exposure,  as  in  the  case  of  the  negative. 
The  authors  are  able  to  regulate  the  time  to 
a  nicety  by  making  a  long  exposure  to  a  weak 
light,  such  as  made  by  a  candle,  instead  of 
a  short  exposure  to  bright  light.  It  is  our 
practice  to  have  in  the  dark-room  a  table  and 
a  candle  or  incandescent  electric  light  with  a 
ground  glass  globe.  If  the  former,  the  dark 
lantern  is  lighted,  and  in  the  security  of  the 
ruby  light  the  package  of  Bromide  paper  is 
opened,  a  sheet  removed,  and  placed  in  the 
frame  with  the  right  or  sensitized  side  of  the 
paper  in  contact  with  the  negative,  and  the 
remaining  sheets  carefully  replaced  in  the  en- 
velope. The  frame  is  now  set  up  on  edge  on 
the  table  facing  the  unlit  candle  and  about 
18  inches  away  from  it.  The  candle  is  lighted 
and  an  exposure  of  thirty  or  forty  seconds 
made  ;  the  candle  is  then  extinguished  and 
the  sheet  of  paper  developed  as  described 
later.  If  the  image  develops  up  harsh  and 
with  no  detail,  but  is  black  and  white,  the 
exposure  has  been  too  short,  and  can  be 
lengthened  according  to  judgment.  If  the 
image  comes  up  quickly  and  is  full  of  detail 
but  weak  and  gray,  and  the  high-lights  tinted, 
the  exposure  has  been  too  long.    The  advan- 


120  The  Photographic 

tage  of  the  weak  light  consists  in  the  great 
latitude  possible  in  regulating  the  exposure, 
which  is  impossible  with  a  bright  light  where 
the  exposure  is  only  a  fractional  one  at  any 
time.  It  is  understood  that  all  the  operations 
must  be  conducted  in  the  dark-room  with  the 
same  care  regarding  white  light  that  is  used 
in  developing  dry-plates.  After  developing, 
the  prints  are  washed  in  two  or  three  changes 
of  the  clearing  solution,  followed  by  four 
changes  of  water,  fixed  in  Hypo,  and  given  a 
thorough  final  washing,  as  with  other  silver 
papers. 

Directions  for  Working  Bromide  Pa- 
pers. In  giving  detailed  instructions  for  mak- 
ing these  prints,  we  cannot  improve  on  the 
directions  given  in  a  pamphlet  sent  out  by  the 
manufacturer  of  Nepera  Bromide  Paper,  and 
therefore  quote  the  following  : 

Exposure.  On  account  of  its  great  sensitiveness, 
which  equals  that  of  a  dry-plate,  Bromide  paper 
should  be  handled  only  in  good  ruby  light.  If  this 
elementary  recommendation  is  not  followed,  much 
annoyance  from  '  'foggy ' '  prints  will  be  the  result.  For 
enlargements,  daylight  is  generally  preferred  ;  while 
for  contact  prints  the  usual  sources  of  artificial  light ; 
viz.,  candle  light,  kerosene  lamps,  gas  light  or  electric 
light,  can  be  used  with  more  advantage  on  account  of 
greater  steadiness.  The  time  of  exposure  depends  on 
several  conditions :  Intensity  of  the  light,  distance 
from  the  light  source,  quality  of  the  light,  and  density 
and  color  of  the  negative. 

Yellow  artificial  light— candle,  kerosene  or  incan- 
descent electric  light — on  account  of  its  smaller  actin- 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


121 


ism,  requires  a  longer  exposure  than  daylight  or  arc 
light. 

If  a  candle  is  taken  as  a  light  source,  it  will  require 
about  25  to  35  seconds'  exposure  for  an  average  albu- 
men negative  placed  at  eight  inches  distance  from  the 
burning  candle.  For  an  incandescent  lamp  of  16- 
candle  power,  placed  at  the  same  distance,  it  would 
take  only  one-sixteenth  of  this  time,  say  about  two 
seconds. 

*  If  the  7iegative  is  placed  at  a  greater  distance  from 
the  light  source,  the  time  of  exposure  will  increase  in 
the  same  proportion  as  the  squares  of  the  distances  in- 
crease. That  is,  a  negative  which  prints  in  25  seconds 
at  8  inches,  will  require  four  times  25  seconds  or  100 
seconds  at  16  inches,  and  nine  times  25  seconds  or  225 
seconds  at  24  inches. 

Developers.  Although  Bromide  paper  can  be  de- 
veloped with  Eikonogen  or  any  other  developer,  we 
recommend,  however,  as  most  reliable  and  giving  the 
purest  whites,  the  Iron  Oxalate  developer,  and  our 
Metol  Quinol  developer. 

Iron  Oxalate  Developer. 


Solution  1. 

Neutral  Oxalate  of  Potash  16  ounces 

Hot  Water  48 

Solutio7i  2. 

Proto  Sulphate  of  Iron  8  ounces 

Hot  Water  24  " 

Citric  Acid  15  grains 


Let  both  solutions  cool  off  before  use,  and  put  them 
in  separate  bottles,  where  they  will  keep  for  months 
in  good  condition.  The  Iron  Solution  should  be  kept 
well  corked,  and  should  not  be  used  if  not  perfectly 
clear  and  green. 

Immediately  before  use,  measure  off  four  volumes 
of  Solution  1,  and  pour  one  volume  of  Solution  2  into  it 
while  stirring.  Do  not  pour  Solution  1  into  Solution  2, 
as  this  will  not  give  a  clear  solution. 

We  do  not  recommend  any  Bromide  of  Potassium 
as  restrainer  ;  we  would  advise,  however,  for  the  same 
purpose,  the  addition  of  one-fifth  or  more  of  old  but 
clear  developer,  which  acts  as  an  effective  restrainer, 

*  Italics  our  reconstruction. 


122 


The  Photographic 


gives  better  blacks,  and  allows  the  image  to  appear 
gradually.  It  is  always  better  to  start  development 
with  a  weak  developer,  containing  some  old  developer, 
and  afterwards,  when  the  image  has  begun  to  appear, 
fresh  developer  can  be  added  in  required  quantity; 
and  finally,  if  necessary  for  bringing  out  the  last  de- 
tails, an  entirely  fresh  developer  can  be  used.  If  you 
have  no  old  developer,  then  add  one  or  two  drops  of 
a  10  per  cent,  potassium  bromide  solution  for  every 
two  ounces  of  developer. 

Development  should  be  carried  out  in  the  proper 
time.  Too  quick  development  will  give  greenish 
blacks  and  flat  prints  ;  too  slow  development  may  pro- 
duce yellowish  whites. 

After  the  paper  has  been  exposed,  lay  it  in  a  tray 
with  clean  water  and  let  it  soak,  avoiding  air  bubbles, 
until  it  is  perfectly  limp  ;  pour  off  the  water,  flow  the 
developer  over  it  in  one  sweep,  and  rock  the  tray  to 
and  fro,  so  that  the  paper  is  always  evenly  covered. 
The  picture  will  gradually  appear.  As  soon  as  the 
details  are  out,  and  the  desired  strength  is  attained, 
pour  the  developer  off  and  apply  the  following 

Clearing  Solution. 

Acetic  Acid  No.  8  about  i  drachm 

Water  i  quart 

This  clearing  solution  should  be  flowed  over  and 
under  the  print  and  the  tray  rocked  for  about  one  min- 
ute ;  then  pour  off,  and  the  same  operation  is  re- 
peated at  least  twice,  taking  care  to  wash  the  back  as 
well  as  the  face  of  the  print,  which  will  prevent  the 
iron  in  the  developer  from  precipitating  on  the  print. 
The  print  is  then  to  be  rinsed  in  four  changes  of  fresh 
water  and  submerged  in  the  following  solution,  con- 
tained in  a  separate  tray,  for  at  least  15  minutes 
longer : 

Fixing-Bath. 

Hyposulphite  of  Soda  8  ounces 

Water  64  ounces 

Do  not  expose  the  print  to  daylight  before  it  is  en- 
tirely fixed.  After  the  print  is  perfectly  fixed,  it  should 
be  washed  thoroughly  in  repeated  changes  of  water 
for  about  one  and  a  half  hours. 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


123 


Metol  Quinol  Developer. 

Warm  Water  750  parts,  or  27  ounces 

Metol   1     "     "15  grains 

Sodium  Sulphite  Crystals   .  .  40     "     "    ilA  ounces 

Hydroquinone   4     "     "    1  drachm 

Potassium  Bromide   %  "     "4  grains 

Potassium  Carbonate  20     "     "5  drachms 

Dissolve  the  chemicals  one  after  another  in  the  same 
order  as  indicated  by  the  formula.  This  stock  solu- 
tion will  keep  indefinitely  in  well  stoppered  bottles. 
For  use,  dilute  a  sufficient  quantity  with  an  equal  vol- 
ume of  water.  This  diluted  developer  can  be  used 
over  and  over  again  until  it  becomes  discolored  or 
works  too  slowly.  In  the  latter  case  some  fresh  de- 
veloper may  be  added  to  it.  Be  careful  not  to  mix 
any  iron  developer  with  this  one,  and  use  clean  bot- 
tles and  trays. 

Metol  Quinol  will  give  a  steady  and  gradual  devel- 
opment. If  the  print  has  been  exposed  properly,  it 
will  take  a  few  minutes  before  it  comes  up  to  the  re- 
quired strength.  Strong  developer  will  bring  out  the 
print  more  quickly,  but  it  may  cause  grayish  blacks 
and  loss  of  "snap."  After  developing,  wash  and  fix 
the  print  in  the  same  way  as  described  above  for 
the  Iron  developer.  But  the  Acetic  Acid  clearing 
solution  can  be  omitted  with  this  developer.  The 
greasy  feeling  produced  by  alkaline  developer  solu- 
tions may  be  avoided  by  dipping  the  fingers  in  diluted 
acetic  acid  or  vinegar. 

To  avoid  yellow  prints,  the  following  points  must  be 
observed  : 

The  Iron  Developer  must  be  acid,  and  entirely  clear. 

Too  long  development,  owing  to  under-exposure 
or  too  weak  developer,  must  be  avoided. 

The  clearing  solution  must  be  used  as  directed. 

Fresh  Hypo  solution  is  required  every  day. 

The  washing  must  be  thorough  after  fixing. 

The  Prints  must  not  remain  in  the  wash  water  over 
night. 

The  Water  should  be  clear  and  free  from  Iron. 

Causes  of  Failure.  Flat  or  mealy  prints  are  caused 
by  over-exposure,  alkaline  oxalate,  excess  of  iron,  or 
a  developer  too  cold,  or  too  old,  or  muddy  ;  also,  by 
too  hard  water. 

Image  developing  too  rapidly,  and  becoming  too 
dark,  is  caused  by  over-exposure  or  a  too  strong  de- 


I24 


The  Photographic 


veloper.  The  contrary  will  happen  if  the  developer  is 
too  weak  or  if  the  prints  are  under-exposed,  or  if  too 
much  old  developer  is  used,  or  if  too  much  bromide 
has  been  added. 

General  foggy  appearance  may  be  caused  by  the 
paper  being  light-struck,  or  the  developer  being  too 
strong,  or  by  impurities  in  the  developer ;  under- 
exposed and  over-developed  prints  will  show  the 
same  effect. 

General  yellowish  stain  may  be  produced  by  a 
muddy  developer,  too  long  development  with  a  weak 
developer,  under-exposure,  imperfect  washing  after 
development,  impure  water,  old  or  exhausted  Hypo 
bath,  or  the  prints  becoming  light-struck  before  fhey 
were  entirely  fixed. 

Irregular  development  of  the  image  may  be  caused 
by  imperfect  soaking  of  the  paper  before  developing, 
or  by  not  distributing  the  developer  evenly  over  the 
entire  surface  of  the  paper. 

Black  spots  or  finger  marks  appearing  while  de- 
veloping are  generally  produced  by  Hypo-soiled 
fingers. 

Hypo  is  the  enemy  of  Bromide  paper,  and  should 
be  carefully  avoided  before  fixing,  as  the  smallest 
trace  of  it  which  enters  into  the  developer  or  the  trays 
will  cause  stains  or  spots. 

Greenish  blacks  are  caused  by  over-exposure,  in- 
complete development,  or  too  much  old  developer. 

Blisters  are  caused  by  air  bubbles  appearing  be- 
tween the  paper  and  film,  causing  the  latter  to  loosen 
itself  from  its  support.  Whenever  they  appear,  the 
surest  way  to  save  the  print  is  to  perforate  the  blister, 
by  means  of  a  needle,  so  as  to  let  the  air  escape  be- 
fore the  blister  has  become  too  large.  Blisters  are  the 
result  of  handling  the  paper  too  roughly  in  the  baths, 
causing  them  to  wrinkle  or  to  fold ;  they  are  also 
caused  by  too  strong  Hypo  or  Acetic  Acid,  or  a  too 
great  difference  in  the  temperature  in  the  different 
baths. 

A  good  preventive  for  blisters  is  the  use  of  a  little 
common  salt  in  the  first  wash  water  after  the  Hypo. 
Blisters  will  never  occur  if  all  the  baths  have  the  same 
temperature,  and  if  the  Hypo  is  not  too  strong. 

Bromide  prints  are  as  permanent  as  en- 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


125 


gravings,  and  soft,  beautiful  effects  in  either 
gray,  black  or  sepia  tones  can  be  produced, 
according  to  the  exposure  and  development. 

Prints  on  Bromide  paper  may  be  colored 
to  resemble  water  colors  by  using  a  very  weak 
solution  of  gelatine  and  water  as  a  medium 
for  the  color.  Take  a  small  quantity  of  gela- 
tine and  allow  it  to  swell  in  cold  water  until 
it  is  thoroughly  softened,  then  pour  off  the 
cold  water  and  add  hot  to  the  softened  gela- 
tine, placing  the  vessel  over  the  fire  and 
stirring  until  the  gelatine  is  dissolved  and  in- 
corporated with  the  water,  which  should  not 
be  thick  when  cold,  but  only  slightly  sticky. 
This  solution  is  used  in  place  of  ordinary 
water  for  working  the  colors.  Never  boil  a 
solution  of  gelatine,  as  this  is  not  necessary, 
and  destroys  its  adhesive  qualities. 

Platinotypes  are  among  the  most  beauti- 
ful and  artistic  of  photographic  reproductions, 
and  as  the  image  is  as  permanent  as  the  paper 
on  which  it  is  printed,  they  have  decided  ad- 
vantages over  the  ordinary  silver  prints.  The 
keeping  qualities  of  the  coated  paper  before 
use  are  somewhat  poor,  however,  and  as  the 
image  is  only  partly  printed  out,  and  finished 
by  development,  the  handling  of  the  paper 
requires  rare  judgment.  In  this  country  the 
paper  is  manufactured  by  Willis  &  Clements, 
and  is  for  sale  in  sealed  tubes  in  the  principal 


126 


The  Photographic 


photographic  stores,  the  necessary  develop- 
ing salts  being  furnished  with  each  order  of 
paper.  In  printing,  place  the  negative  and 
paper  in  the  frame  in  the  usual  manner,  and 
expose  to  diffused  daylight  until  the  image 
appears  fairly  well  denned,  of  a  grayish 
orange  tint,  with  detail  slightly  visible  in  the 
middle  tones.  When  printing  from  thin  nega- 
tives care  must  be  used  not  to  over-expose ; 
as  soon  as  the  image  is  faintly  visible  it  may 
be  enough.  The  paper  is  removed  from  the 
frame  and,  the  developer  having  been  mixed 
according  to  the  directions  accompanying  it, 
the  print  is  floated  on  the  developer  as  in  silver- 
ing paper  ;  lift  it  quickly  to  see  if  air-bells  are 
present ;  if  any,  touch  them  off  and  refloat ; 
the  picture  will  develop  up  rapidly,  and  when 
considered  sufficient  the  development  is 
stopped  by  placing  it  in  the  acid  clearing- 
bath. 

Clearing  and  Washing.  The  clearing- 
bath  consists  of 

Water   60  ounces 

Muriatic  Acid  (c.  p.)  1  ounce 

Give  the  prints  three  changes  of  acid  baths 
of  10  minutes  each,  and  follow  with  three 
good  washes  in  plain  water,  say  15  or  20 
minutes  altogether.  For  more  detailed  in- 
structions, our  readers  are  referred  to  an  in- 
teresting little  pamphlet  published  by  Willis 


Primer:  The  Printing, 


127 


&  Clements,  from  which  we  have  quoted  in 
part. 

Ferro-Prussiate,  or  Blue-Print  Paper. 
Probably  no  photographic  process  offers  as 
many  chances  of  success  to  the  beginner  as 
the  "Blue  Process."  This  is  not  because 
the  work  needs  less  care,  or  is  tolerant  of 
slovenly  methods,  or  the  finished  prints  are 
inferior  even  when  at  their  best;  such  an  ad- 
mission would  be  a  libel  on  an  already  much 
abused  but  beautiful  process.  The  sole  rea- 
son lies  in  the  simplicity  of  the  manipulation 
and  the  absence  of  troublesome  baths.  The 
paper  may  be  prepared  by  the  amateur  him- 
self, or  he  may  use  with  success  some  standard 
brand  found  on  the  market  ready  prepared. 
The  paper,  if  properly  coated  and  stored  in 
a  dry  place,  will  keep  in  good  condition  for 
many  months.  The  prepared  paper,  if  bought 
from  a  reliable  dealer,  will  be  found  highly 
satisfactory  and  very  low  in  price,  the  4x5 
size  costing  about  20  cents  for  25  sheets. 

This  paper,  as  now  made  by  the  larger 
manufacturers,  is  coated  by  machinery  on  the 
highest  grade  of  plain  photographic  stock, 
specially  sized  at  the  mills  in  Rives,  and 
gives  results  which  cannot  be  approached  by 
the  old  methods.  For  those  who  desire  to 
prepare  their  own  paper,  we  give  the  follow- 
ing directions:    Select  a  few  sheets  of  your 


128 


The  Photographic 


plain  Rives  paper,  such  as  you  used  for  salt- 
ing, but  which  have  not  been  in  the  damp- 
ening box,  mark  the  right  side  so  you  will 
know  it,  and  tack  a  sheet  to  a  board,  right 
side  up.  Prepare  the  following  solution,  and 
keep  it  from  the  light: 

Red  Prussiate  of  Potash  i  ounce 

Citrate  of  Iron  and  Ammonium    .   \x/z  ounces 
Distilled  Water  10  " 

Mix  thoroughly  and  filter  ;  this  solution 
will  have  a  deep  wine  color,  and  dry  on  the 
paper  a  lemon  yellow.  If  the  solution  is 
green  and  has  a  precipitate,  the  Ammonium 
Citrate  of  Iron  is  old  and  spoiled,  or  you  have 
been  given  Citrate  of  Iron  instead.  The 
chemicals  being  ready,  they  are  poured  into  a 
bowl,  and  with  the  aid  of  a  camel's  hair  brush 
about  three  inches  wide  and  bound  in  rubber, 
the  solution  is  spread  upon  the  paper  by 
stroking  first  lengthwise  and  then  across, 
being  careful  to  cover  the  whole  surface  as 
thinly  and  evenly  as  possible  ;  this  will  be 
difficult  at  first,  but  will  come  with  practice. 
The  paper  is  immediately  lifted  from  the 
board  and  hung  up  to  dry  ;  if  allowed  to  re- 
main on  the  board,  the  chemicals  will  strike 
through  and  give  flat  prints.  It  is  advised  by 
some  to  coat  the  paper  by  floating,  but  it  is 
very  difficult,  as  the  solution  flows  to  the  bot- 
tom of  the  sheet  in  drying  and  causes  that 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


129 


part  to  be  heavy  while  the  top  is  very  thin. 
Heavy  drawing  paper  having  a  rough  surface 
gives,  with  bold  or  large  negatives,  a  very 
handsome  effect,  and  for  marine  views,  espe- 
cially if  large,  the  results  are  superb,  but  the 
drawing  paper  must  be  used  the  day  it  is 
coated,  as  it  has  chemicals  in  its  sizing  which 
cause  the  coating  to  spoil  after  a  few  hours. 
This  does  not  affect  the  finished  prints,  how- 
ever, if  they  are  completed  before  the  paper 
spoils. 

Having  prepared  our  paper,  or  purchased  a 
package  of  some  standard  brand,  we  print  as 
follows :  Place  the  negative,  previously 
dusted,  in  the  frame  ;  on  this  lay  the  sheet  of 
Blue-Print  Paper,  coated  side  in  contact  with 
the  film  ;  next  lay  down  the  pad,  and  on  all, 
the  back-board  of  the  frame,  which  is  then 
clamped  in  place.  Carry  the  frame  to  the 
window  and  print  in  sunlight  unless  the  nega- 
tive is  very  thin,  as  this  paper  prints  more 
slowly  than  silver  or  platinum  paper.  After 
a  few  minutes'  exposure,  examine  in  subdued 
light,  and  the  paper  will  be  found  to  have  an 
olive-green  color  in  the  shadows,  and  lemon 
yellow  in  the  high-lights  ;  replace  the  back- 
board and  continue  printing  until  the  deep 
shadows  corresponding  with  the  thin  parts  of 
the  negative  take  on  a  bronzed  color,  but  not 
until  the  whole  picture  stands  out  deeply  bronzed; 


130 


The  Photographic 


when  the  proper  depth  is  reached,  remove  the 
print  from  the  frame  and  place  it  in  a  tray  of 
clean  water,  making  sure  that  the  whole  sur- 
face is  wetted  immediately,  and  that  no  air 
bells  have  formed.  So  sensitive  is  this  paper 
that  the  moisture  which  strikes  through  from 
the  back  of  the  sheet,  in  the  parts  not  wet,  will 
spoil  the  coating  in  these  spots  in  a  few 
seconds,  and  they  will  appear  as  blue  stains  in 
the  finished  print,  and  unless  you  are  very 
observant  you  will  be  puzzled  to  know  the 
cause.  The  manufacturer  is  usually  censured 
for  these  spots.  After  immersing  the  print, 
throw  the  water  over  it  and  keep  it  in  motion. 
The  chemicals  will  be  seen  to  float  off  in  a 
cloud;  after  five  minutes'  washing,  change  the 
water;  repeat  this  in  five  minutes  more,  and 
then  turn  the  prints  face  down  and  allow  them 
to  wash  for  not  less  than  30  minutes.  It  is 
absurd  to  shorten  the  washing  because  the 
prints  are  washing  down  too  light,  or  the 
chemicals  leave  the  paper  entirely,  and  noth- 
ing remains  but  a  white  sheet.  What  is 
needed  is  a  longer  exposure  to  light.  The 
water  does  not  bleach  the  print,  but  fixes  it, 
and  brings  out  the  beautiful  blue  color  of  the 
chemicals  which  have  been  acted  on,  and 
washes  away  those  not  affected  by  light.  If 
after  washing,  the  print  is  dark  and  a  dull 
blue  color,  with  the  high-lights  tinted,  the 


Primer:  The  Printing. 


131 


exposure  has  been  too  long.  Shortening  the 
washing  of  the  print  will  cause  it  to  fade  and 
the  high-lights  to  turn  gray,  the  Iron  not  being 
thoroughly  eliminated. 

If  the  prints  are  not  satisfactory,  look  to 
your  negative  before  condemning  the  paper. 
Remember  that  no  process  can  give  a  print 
full  of  detail  and  even  in  gradation  if  these 
qualities  are  not  in  the  negative.  If  the 
paper  prints  blue  and  washes  out  white  it  is 
all  right,  and  will  give  beautiful  prints  if  prop- 
erly treated.  After  washing,  the  prints  are 
hung  up  to  dry  and  as  the  surface  has  no 
glossy  coating,  they  will  not  curl,  and  can  be 
folded  without  injury.  Don't  try  to  burnish 
them  or  enamel  the  surface  ;  it  will  not  im- 
prove the  appearance,  and  certainly  will  rob 
them  of  their  charm  for  the  artistic  eye. 

There  is  a  popular  impression  that  Blue- 
Print  paper  is  not  sensitive,  and  can  be 
handled  in  white  light  with  impunity.  Don't 
believe  it ;  even  subdued  light  will  injure  its 
tones  and  keeping  qualities  ;  treat  the  paper 
with  as  much  respect  as  you  would  silver 
paper,  and  it  will  reward  you  with  prints 
which  will  be  faithful  reproductions  of  your 
negatives,  rendered  in  a  way  that  cannot  fail 
to  please,  and  to  their  first  charm  will  be  the 
added  pleasure  that  they  will  not  fade  or  turn 
yellow  with  age. 


132 


The  Photographic  Primer. 


In  purchasing  blue  paper  ready  prepared, 
do  not  reject  it  if  the  coating  has  turned  to  a 
brown  or  light  olive  color,  as  it  will  do  this 
with  age  and  yet  wash  out  white.  Paper 
which  has  turned  to  a  greyish  blue  color  is 
spoiled.  The  color,  however  is  very  deceptive 
to  the  inexperienced,  and  no  paper  should  be 
condemned  until  it  has  been  tested  by  washing 
in  clean  water  for  a  full  half  hour  ;  if  it  refuses 
to  wash  out  white,  it  has  spoiled.  Paper 
which  has  turned  a  little,  and  washes  out 
grey,  is  nicely  adapted  to  some  views  where 
a  soft  grey  tone  is  desired  and  the  brilliant 
china-white  tones  of  the  fresh  paper  are 
objectionable. 


PART  III 


Section  l. 


MOUNTING. 


HEN  the  prints  are  fixed  and 
washed,  they  may  be  mounted 
immediately  on  their  perma- 
nent support,  without  drying. 
To  do  this,  however,  the  print 
must  have  been  studied  out  as  to  size,  and 
the  paper  trimmed  before  toning.  It  is  for 
the  reason  that  this  can  so  seldom  be  done 
satisfactorily,  in  advance,  that  prints  are  gen- 
erally dried  and  then  trimmed. 

Some  little  art  is  required  in  trimming  a 
print,  as  only  the  best  section  of  the  picture 
ought  to  be  preserved,  and  it  is  necessary  to 
decide  what  is  superfluous  and  irrelevant. 
As  usually  trimmed,  the  photographer  seems 
to  be  simply  intent  on  keeping  the  regular 
size  of  the  print — in  other  words,  he  trims 
for  the  negative  and  not  for  the  picture.  The 
neatest  way  to  see  the  value  of  the  picture  is 
to  lay  it  upon  the  sheet  of  glass  used  as  a  cut- 
ting block,  and  place  over  it  the  plate  glass 
form  furnished   by  the  supply  houses,  and 

(135) 


136 


The  Photographic 


shift  the  form  until  the  margins  of  it  define 
what  you  wish  to  cut  from  two  sides,  regard- 
less of  the  others.    When  these  are  trimmed 
with  a  moderately  sharp  knife-blade,  the  glass 
can  be  shifted  on  the  print,  and,  without  much 
difficulty  in  keeping  the  lines  square  or  at 
right  angles,  another  side  can  be  trimmed, 
and  so  on  in  turn.    In  this  way  you  may  trim 
a  5x8  print  down  to  4x6%,  or  some  other 
size,  but  if  the  right  effect  governs  your  cut- 
ting, it  cannot  help  but  give  you  happy  re- 
sults.   Some  people,  perhaps,  would  regret 
the  " waste"  of  paper;   their   diagnosis  of 
economy  is  at  fault.    It  is  well  to  trim  all  the 
prints  you  have  ready  at  once,  and,  clearing 
away  the  cuttings,  place  the  prints  in  clean 
water  to  soak  a  few  minutes  until  limp.  Don't 
soak  them  in  the  full  vigor  of  the  word,  but 
only  enough  to  make  them  limp.    Then  gather 
them  and  place  face  downward,  one  upon 
another,  on  a  sheet  of  glass.    Take  a  piece 
of  blotting  paper  and  gently  press  the  super- 
fluous moisture  from  the  pile  of  prints. 

The  mounts,  or  cardboards,  are  then  to  be 
brought  out  and  placed  to  one  side,  and  the 
upper  corners  of  the  point  for  the  print  marked 
upon  each  one  with  a  faint  pencil  tick,  to 
insure  placing  it  correctly.  Then,  with  a 
flat  brush  cover  the  back  of  the  topmost  print 
with  Higgins'  or  any  good  photo-mounting 


Primer:  Mounting. 


137 


paste,  and  be  careful  that  the  edges  and  the 
whole  back  of  the  print  are  faithfully  covered 
with  the  paste.  The  print  is  then  to  be  care- 
fully raised  by  one  corner  (a  dull  knife-blade 
is  handy,  for  albumen  paper  tears  easily  when 
wet),  and  turned  and  held  suspended  over  the 
mount.  Allow  the  top  edge  to  drop  until 
the  corners  correspond  with  the  pencil  ticks 
on  the  mount,  and  then  gently  lower  the  whole 
print  until  in  contact  with  the  card.  Take 
a  piece  of  clean,  white  linen,  not  starched,  and 
place  over  the  print,  and  gently  rub  the  sur- 
face with  a  fiat-bladed  paper  cutter  or  some 
smooth  object,  rubbing  from  the  center  of 
print  towards  the  edges,  so  that  superfluous 
moisture  or  paste  are  forced  there  and  ab- 
sorbed by  the  cloth.  Look  at  the  print  fre- 
quently to  be  sure  that  it  is  smooth,  and  that 
the  edges  are  adhering.  Then  lay  the  mount 
aside  to  dry,  making  sure,  before  doing  so, 
that  no  scraps  of  paste  are  around  on  the 
mount  or  print;  if  any  are  present  wipe  them 
off  with  a  soft,  damp  sponge.  A  superior 
device  in  mounting  is  the  neat  print  roller 
manufactured  by  The  Scovill  &  Adams  Co., 
of  New  York,  and  called  the  "Champion." 
With  this  roller  the  air-bells  are  rolled  out 
and  the  surface  of  the  paper  kept  from  being 
scratched  or  marked  as  when  using  the  paper- 
cutter. 


The  Photographic 


All  prints  have  a  tendency  to  curl  the 
mount  unless  kept  under  pressure.  A  sim- 
ple way  to  prevent  this  is  to  paste  on  the 
back  of  the  mount  a  piece  of  tough  white 
paper,  corresponding  in  size  with  the  print. 
The  contraction  of  this  paper  opposes  the 
shrinking  of  the  print,  and  keeps  the  picture 
nearly  flat. 

It  must  be  remembered,  with  albumen 
paper,  that  it  always  stretches  in  one  direction, 
and  that  in  some  subjects  this  creates  bad 
results  by  actually  changing  the  proportions  of 
the  picture.  With  portraits  this  tendency 
makes  itself  decidedly  prominent. 

Professional  photographers  always  burnish 
their  prints,  hence  the  high  luster  and  polish 
found  on  the  surface  of  their  work.  The 
burnishing  is  done  by  passing  the  mounted 
photograph  between  steel  rollers,  which  are 
heated  by  a  lamp.  This  reduces  all  the 
slight  inequalities  in  the  surface  of  the  pic- 
ture, and  gives  it  a  finished  appearance. 

The  choice  of  mounts  or  card  supports  for 
photographic  prints  is  very  much  a  matter  of 
personal  taste  or  whim.  All  kinds,  colors, 
sizes,  etc.,  may  be  obtained  of  the  dealers. 
Thick  mounts  are  generally  made  with  bev- 
eled edges,  to  do  away  with  the  clumsy  ap- 
pearance which  a  very  thick  card  edge  gives. 

If  you  wish  to  mount  a  print  on  thin  paper 


Primer:  Mounting. 


i39 


and  prevent  curling  or  wrinkling,  it  can  be 
done  in  the  following  way:  Take  the  print  to 
be  mounted  and  smooth  it  with  a  warm  flat- 
iron,  and  indicate  on  the  paper  the  position 
of  the  four  corners  of  the  print  just  inside  of 
its  outer  edge.  Make  a  thick  solution  of  gum 
arabic,  and,  with  a  ruling  pen,  draw  a  wide 
line  of  mucilage  from  point  to  point.  Allow 
the  gum  arabic  to  become  sticky,  and  then 
place  the  print  in  position  under  weights. 
When  dry  the  mount  will  keep  smooth  and 
not  curl. 

The  mounting  of  bromide  prints,  and  vari- 
ous methods  of  obtaining  different  effects  in 
doing  so,  are  fully  described  in  the  circulars 
accompanying  the  makes  of  different  manu- 
facturers. 

Blue-prints  can  be  mounted  at  any  time, 
and  require  no  more  careful  handling  than  an 
ordinary  print  or  engraving.  They  keep  very 
flat,  and  need  no  extra  care  of  any  kind. 


Section  II. 
PRESERVATION. 


EGATIVES  are  best  kept  singly 
in  stout  bags  or  envelopes,  the 
full  notation  concerning  them 
being  written  upon  the  outside. 
They  are  thus  easily  found,  and 
scratching  is  avoided. 

Prints  can  be  kept  in  many  ways.  They 
can  be  mounted  by  simply  pasting  the  corners 
in  an  ordinary  scrap-book  of  the  limp  page 
kind  ;  or  a  better  method  is  in  vogue,  in  which 
double  leaves  uncut  at  the  outer  edge  are  sub- 
stituted for  single  sheets  in  the  book  and  the 
corners  of  the  print  are  caught  under  a  diag- 
onal knife-cut  made  at  the  right  point  in  one 
thickness  of  the  leaf  to  receive  the  corners  of 
the  print  which  you  intend  placing  there. 
This  has  two  features  of  merit.  You  can  re- 
move any  print  at  any  time  without  damage 
to  the  book  or  picture,  and  in  turning  the 
flexible  leaves  the  print  conforms  to  the  curve 
of  the  bend  of  the  book,  slightly  moving  be- 
tween the  corner  slits.    When  the  prints  are 

(140) 


Preservation. 


pasted  at  the  corners  they  are  liable  to  wrinkle 
if  they  be  silver  prints,  and  a  crease  soon  de- 
velops into  a  rupture  of  the  paper.  Besides, 
they  can  only  be  cut  or  torn  out.  In  mounting 
prints  in  flexible  albums  or  scrap  books,  the 
prints  may  be  soaked  in  a  weak  solution  of 
glycerine  and  water,  which  will  make  them 
more  limp  and  less  likely  to  curl. 

If  the  amateur  does  not  object  to  bulk,  and 
has  no  desire  to  remove  his  prints  from  the 
album,  there  are  all  sorts  of  expensive  and  in- 
expensive albums  made  in  which  the  leaves 
are  simply  card-mounts  held  to  the  binding 
by  flexible  muslin  strips,  and  are  removable 
for  convenience  in  mounting.  The  prints  are 
mounted  on  these  cards  precisely  as  on  the 
single  cards.  The  main  objection  to  the  card 
albums,  as  has  been  said,  is  their  bulk  and 
weight.  Where  many  prints  are  to  be  pre- 
served, this  will  often  be  found  a  serious  an- 
noyance. 

A  series  of  prints,  mounted  on  cards,  may 
be  very  neatly  preserved  in  good  shape  by 
punching  holes  in  the  edge  of  one  margin  with 
an  eyeletting  punch,  and  forming  a  flexible 
hinge  of  ribbon  or  cord  passed  through  the 
holes.  A  tough  paper  cover,  made  of  felt 
wall-paper,  or  something  similar,  neatly  let- 
tered, adds  to  the  attractive  quality,  and  keeps 
the  dust  off  the  prints. 


I42 


The  Photographic  Primer. 


If  you  have  many  prints  of  one  size,  or  many 
prints  mounted  on  one  size  card  mount,  they 
may  be  arranged  in  boxes  of  the  telescopic 
order,  such  as  are  sold  to  contain  letters  or 
business  papers.  The  prints  can  be  slidden 
into  the  box,  and  the  tight  case  excludes  the 
dust.  A  labeled  row  of  these  standing  in  a 
bookcase  is  unobtrusive,  and  gives  easy  and 
ready-reference  access  to  the  prints. 

These  suggestions  are  offered  simply  to  cre- 
ate a  starting  point  for  the  beginner,  who  will 
want  to  develop  some  pleasing  method  of  his 
own  for  keeping  his  photographs,  a  method  in 
which  he  will  feel  the  pleasure  of  his  proprie- 
tary rights.  The  main  thing  in  all  ways  of 
preservation  is  to  exclude  dust  and  dampness. 


Section  III. 
ENLARGING. 


SMALL  picture,  such  as  that 
made  bya4x5or5x7  camera, 
has  many  pleasing  and  attrac- 
tive points.     It  is  not  too  small 


to  show  a  great  deal  of  detail, 
and  the  picture  is  so  compact  that  the  eye 
readily  takes  it  all  in.  Besides  this,  econ- 
omy in  plates,  sensitive  paper,  etc.,  are  pru- 
dent virtues. 

But  the  desire  for  a  larger  showing  of  some 
special  picture  will  always  speed  the  inclina- 
tion to  purchase  a  larger  camera.  Without 
making  this  further  investment,  however,  and 
afterwards  rinding  that  your  larger  apparatus 
grows  dusty  because  it  is  so  heavy  to  cart 
around,  while  your  smaller  box  has  incessant 
service,  there  is  a  method  of  procuring  the 
larger  picture  from  the  small  plate  and  getting 
a  result  as  attractive  as  if  given  by  the  big, 
expensive  camera  and  plates.  Recent  years 
have  seen  the  development  of  methods  of  pho- 
tographic enlargement,  and  the  writers  propose 

(143) 


i44 


The  Photographic 


to  give  a  few  hints  as  to  how  they  have  worked 
one  of  these  methods  inexpensively. 

In   PHOTOGRAPHIC   ENLARGEMENT,  by  which 

we  mean  the  printing  of  a  large  picture  from 
a  small  plate,  the  negative  image  is  projected 
onto  the  surface  of  a  piece  of  bromide  papen 
instead  of  being  in  contact  with  the  paper  in 
a  printing-frame.  The  negative  is  placed  back 
of  a  lens  in  the  same  way  that  a  magic  lan- 
tern slide  works,  and  the  image  focused  to 
the  size  we  desire,  on  a  white  screen.  In 
the  magic  lantern  the  slide  is  a  positive,  or  a 
print  on  glass,  and  the  image  cast  in  this  case 
is  the  picture  as  a  print  would  show  it;  but 
in  enlarging,  the  image  cast  on  the  screen  is 
the  reverse  of  nature,  the  bright  parts  of  the 
picture  being  dark  and  the  dark  parts  light. 
A  tree,  for  instance,  seen  on  the  screen,  as 
cast  by  a  negative,  is  a  mass  of  blazing  white 
boughs  and  trunk,  and  so  the  reversion  fol- 
lows with  all  objects.  As  the  sensitive  bro- 
mide paper  in  printing  from  the  negative 
prints  black  where  the  light  strikes  through 
the  thin  or  clear  parts  of  the  negative,  so  the 
same  paper  prints  the  enlarged  image  of  the 
negative  cast  upon  it. 

All  of  the  light  used  in  the  operation  must 
be  behind  the  negative,  and  everything  else, 
the  camera,  the  operator  and  the  screen  for 
the  bromide  paper  must  be  in  darkness  as 


Primer:  Enlarging. 


H5 


sincere  as  the  darkness  of  the  dark-room.  As 
the  piece  of  bromide  paper  must  be  spread 
out  on  the  screen,  and  it  is  so  sensitive  to 
light,  the  necessity  for  this  will  be  seen  at  once. 
Of  course,  the  dark  room  light  may  be  in  use 
all  the  time  to  assist  in  the  operations. 

Two  sources  of  light  are  convenient  for  the 
amateur;  one  of  them  is  sunlight,  free  to  his 
use,  without  cost.  Enlarging  by  daylight  is 
quicker  than  by  artificial  light,  although  more 
care  and  stopping  down  of  the  lens  is  required  to 
produce  soft  tone  effects.  A  window  of  a  room 
having  no  other  source  of  light  must  be  chosen, 
and  a  light-tight  screen  made  to  fit  in  the  whole 
extent  of  the  frame.  This  can  be  done  by 
making  an  ordinary  frame  of  one  by  two-inch 
strips,  and  the  whole  area  covered  with  black 
silesia  in  double  thickness,  or  a  combination 
of  one  thickness  of  black  and  one  thickness 
of  red  silesia.  (This  is  the  cheapest  material 
we  know  of.)  If  the  frame  fits  against  the 
jamb,  sill  and  head,  the  sash  bead  forms  an 
offset,  and  there  ought  to  be  no  crevices  left 
for  sunbeams  or  chance  rays  of  light.  Before 
the  screen  is  placed  in  position,  the  lower  sash 
of  the  window  should  be  raised  and  a  mirror 
at  least  eight  times  larger  than  the  area  of  the 
plate  you  are  enlarging  from  placed  at  an  angle 
outside  the  window,  so  that  its  reflection, 
when  you  look  at  the  slanting  mirror  on  a 


146 


The  Photographic 


horizontal  line,  shows  nothing  but  the  sky 
in  the  looking-glass.  We  will  assume  that  a 
table  or  support  will  bring  the  center  of  the 
back  of  your  camera  at  a  height  of  four  feet 
from  the  floor.  The  mirror  should  then  be 
held  on  its  slant  so  that  the  center  of  its  di- 
agonal height  will  be  the  center  of  the  back 
of  your  camera  when  placed  upon  the  table. 
Using  this  same  center  point,  a  hole  is  cut 
through  the  silesia  of  the  screen  about  an  inch 
larger  than  the  entire  back  of  your  camera, 
and  a  drawing  cord  of  rubber  elastic  inserted 
in  a  seam  made  around  the  opening.  The 
silesia  should  have  some  fullness  on  its  frame, 
so  that  the  rubber  elastic  can  contract  the 
opening  at  least  one-third  of  its  area  and  can 
be  made  to  bind  tightly  around  the  back  of 
your  camera. 

The  table  is  now  pushed  close  to  the  win- 
dow and  the  camera,  extended,  and  with  the 
lens  pointed  towards  the  inside  of  the  room, 
and  the  back  towards  the  window,  is  placed 
upon  it.  As  four  feet  is  the  height  we  have 
assumed  as  most  convenient  for  the  operator, 
and  as  tables  are  rarely  made  that  high,  a 
piece  of  planed  board  about  twelve  inches 
wide,  and  nailed  to  some  firm  supports,  must 
be  placed  upon  it,  and  the  extra  height  thus 
gained. 

An  ordinary  plate-holder  offers  the  easiest 


Primer:  Enlarging. 


H7 


method  of  holding  the  negative  at  the  rear  of 
the  camera,  but  as  the  light  must  pass  through 
the  plate,  the  septum  or  middle  division  in  a 
holder  must  be  cut  out  neatly  to  a  line  which 
will  be  an  eighth  of  an  inch  less  than  the  size 
of  the  plate  all  around.  The  plate  thus  held 
is  sure  to  be  parallel  with  the  lens,  and  the 
slide  can  be  used  at  will,  to  shut  it  off  from 
the  camera.  Of  course  the  holder  is  sacri- 
ficed in  the  cutting,  and  can  only  be  used 
for  this  special  purpose  thereafter. 

The  clear  sky  in  the  mirror  will  now  be 
reflected  on  the  back  of  the  negative,  furnish- 
ing an  illuminant  of  immense  power,  too 
strong  and  not  sufficiently  diffused  for  the 
purpose.  It  is  necessary  to  place  a  piece  of 
ground  glass  at  least  two  inches  back  of  the 
negative.  Jf  it  could  be  closer,  and  your  cam- 
era has  a  ground  glass  frame  which  does  not 
fold  but  remains  back  of  the  holder  when  it  is 
in  the  camera,  everything  would  be  complete. 
But  you  must  have  the  ground  glass  further 
away,  and  as  we  cannot  know  the  kind  of 
camera  you  are  operating,  we  must  leave 
your  ingenuity  to  work  unaided,  except  by 
telling  you  what  we  did  ourselves.  In  our 
experiments  the  camera  used  was  an  ordinary 
one  of  the  simplest  type,  in  which  the  ground 
glass  folded  down  at  the  back,  and  the  holder 
dropped  into  its  place  and  was  secured  by  a 


148 


The  Photographic 


catch  at  the  top.  This  being  the  case,  we  re- 
moved the  ground  glass  frame  entire  and  set 
the  plate-holder,  altered  for  the  purpose,  in 
its  place.  An  ordinary  shallow  cigar-box, 
minus  lid  and  bottom,  and  a  little  larger  than 
the  back  of  the  camera,  held  the  ground  glass 
as  a  frame,  and  a  sleeve  of  black  cloth  about 
6  inches  long  was  glued  to  it,  with  the  elastic 
in  its  outer  edge.  The  cigar-box  frame, 
painted  black  inside,  was  permanently  fixed  to 
cross  strips  in  the  window  screen  and  a  light- 
tight  joint  made  around  it.  The  camera, 
with  its  plate-holder,  could  then  be  pushed 
up  to  the  cigar-box  frame  with  its  piece  of 
ground  glass  at  the  outer  side  next  to  the  win- 
dow, and  the  rubbered-edge  of  the  sleeve 
slipped  over  the  back  of  the  camera,  mak- 
ing a  light-tight  joint. 

These  arrangements  made,  the  room  itself 
is  like  a  big  camera,  and  you  are  inside  of  it. 
With  the  cap  off  the  lens,  the  bright,  queer 
looking  negative  picture  will  be  seen  reflected 
on  the  opposite  wall,  more  or  less  distinct  as 
the  chance  position  of  your  focus  gives  it.  If 
the  wall  is  white,  and  not  too  far  off,  you  can 
probably  get  a  sharp  image  by  moving  your 
camera-front  backward  and  forward  until  you 
arrive  at  definition,  just  as  in  taking  a  picture. 
The  distance  will,  of  course,  have  to  be  re- 
duced to  suit  the  size  of  your  bromide  paper, 


Primer:  Enlarging. 


149 


so  that  some  movable  screen  must  be  used 
which  can  be  shifted  backward  or  forward  in 
relation  to  the  camera  until  the  right  condi- 
tions are  established.  The  three  points  to  be 
fixed  are  the  distance  between  your  lens  and 
the  negative  (done  as  in  focusing  with  the 
camera  in  the  field) ;  the  distance  between  the 
lens  and  the  screen  or  support  on  which  the 
bromide  paper  is  to  be  placed,  and,  necessa- 
rily, the  size  of  the  image  on  the  screen.  A 
very  little  experiment  will  enable  you  to  make 
some  general  calculations  which  will  help  you 
to  avoid  experimenting  afterward. 

There  are  several  things  necessary  to 
secure  perfect  exposure,  and  they  must  be 
carefully  attended  to.  There  must  be  no 
shadows  on  the  mirror;  if  the  sun  is  over- 
head, the  mirror  may  be  in  the  sunshine  if  it 
is  all  over  it;  the  mirror  must  cast  the  light 
on  the  ground  glass  ;  the  negative,  lens  and 
screen  must  be  absolutely  parallel  with  each 
other.  Any  deviation  in  the  last  mentioned 
condition  will  result  in  distortion. 

It  is  difficult  to  get  the  screen  square  with 
the  lens  and  negative,  and  yet  have  it  possi- 
ble to  shift  the  screen  backward  and  forward. 
Personally  we  overcame  the  difficulty  by  hav- 
ing the  board  support  of  the  camera  long 
enough  to  receive  the  screen  (for  which  pur- 
pose we  used  a  light  drawing-board),  and  to 


ISO 


The  Photographic 


have  it  arranged  on  a  sliding  frame  controlled 
by  the  square  edges  of  the  plank  support,  the 
camera  being  kept  square  by  confining  its  bed 
between  two  strips  nailed  to  the  plank.  The 
board  and  screen  can  easily  be  tested  with  a 
right-angled  triangle.  The  camera  and  screen 
once  squared,  always  held  the  same  relations, 
no  matter  how  much  the  screen  was  shifted 
backward  or  forward.  In  the  regular  appa- 
ratus, made  for  the  purpose,  the  screen 
travels  on  a  floor  track  with  castors  and  run- 
ning gear. 

When  the  right  focus  is  established  for  the 
size  of  the  enlargement,  and  the  negative 
picture  is  sharp  and  clear  on  a  piece  of  white 
paper  pasted  on  the  drawing  board,  the 
corners  of  the  image  can  be  marked  with  lead 
pencil  ticks  and  the  lens  cap  replaced,  shut- 
ting out  the  image  and  the  resulting  reflected 
light.  If  the  dark  lantern  is  lighted  the  pack- 
age of  bromide  paper  can  be  opened  and  a  sheet 
removed  and  placed  on  the  screen  at  the  posi- 
tion indicated  by  the  pencil  ticks,  being 
stretched  smoothly  and  held  by  thumb  tacks 
in  sufficient  quantity  to  keep  the  edges  from 
curling.  (It  is  best  to  have  the  image  a  little 
smaller  than  the  sheet  of  sensitive  paper.) 
This  done,  the  lens  cap  is  removed  and  the 
exposure  made  on  the  paper.  The  wisest 
way  to  judge  of  the  time  is  to  expose  on  some 


Primer:  Enlarging. 


small  strips  of  bromide  paper  which  will  take 
a  part  of  the  image,  timing  each  one  differ- 
ently, then  developing  and  noting  the  result. 
It  might  also  be  wise  to  mark  the  time  in 
pencil  on  the  back  of  each  strip,  so  that  you 
will  not  lose  track  of  it.  The  use  of  the  stops 
in  the  lens  is  a  question  to  be  considered, 
but  the  smaller  stops  can  hardly  do  service, 
since  they  prolong  the  exposure  to  a  weari- 
some length. 

When  the  exposure  is  made  the  lens  is 
covered  with  the  cap  and  the  bromide  paper 
removed  from  the  screen  and  placed  in  a  light- 
tight  receptacle  until  you  wish  to  develop  it. 
A  new  negative  may  then  be  placed  in  the 
holder,  and  the  work  proceeded  with  at  your 
pleasure. 

The  development  of  the  enlargement  is 
exactly  the  same  as  the  development  of  a 
small  bromide  print,  although  of  course  you 
will  need  trays  of  adequate  size. 

Almost  any  kind  of  lens  can  be  used  in  this 
work,  but  view  lenses  are  the  best,  with  the 
whole  opening  slightly  stopped  down.  Wide 
angle  lenses  can  be  used  where  the  space  for 
working  in  is  restricted. 

To  make  enlargements  at  night  requires  a 
considerable  expenditure  in  the  matter  of  a 
pair  of  condensing  lenses  whose  circle  will 
cover  the  corners  of  your  negative  to  be  en- 


152 


The  Photographic 


larged  from.  To  use  them  the  writers  made 
a  frame  of  half-inch  poplar  wood  about  six 
inches  deep  and  an  inch  larger  all  around 
than  the  diameter  of  the  lenses.  Two  boards 
served  as  mounts  or  supports  for  the  glasses, 
each  board  having  a  hole  the  exact  area  of  the 
lens  and  the  glasses  held  in  place  by  small 
brads.  The  lenses  thus  mounted  were  placed 
in  the  box  frame,  being  held  about  an  inch 
apart  by  strips  of  wood  forming  a  stop  bead 
between  the  two.  This  box  was  placed  imme- 
diately back  of  the  plate-holder  with  the 
negative  to  be  enlarged  in  it,  without  any 
ground  glass  and  with  about  four  inches  be- 
tween the  nearest  lens  and  the  negative.  The 
light  used  was  a  regular  sized  Rochester  oil 
burner  without  any  shade,  and  with  an  eight 
inch  reflector  placed  so  that  the  center  of  the 
white  flame,  the  center  of  the  reflector  and 
the  center  of  the  lenses  coincided.  The 
illuminating  power  furnished  in  daylight  by 
the  sky,  the  mirror  and  the  ground  glass  were 
thus  replaced  for  night  work  with  the  happiest 
results  and  but  slightly  prolonged  exposure. 
The  difficulty  which  may  have  already  occurred 
to  the  reader's  mind,  /.  e.,  how  to  separate  the 
light  from  the  room  in  which  the  enlargements 
are  made,  was  gotten  over  in  this  instance  by 
cutting  a  square  hole  in  the  partition  between 
an  out-kitchen  and  the  main  kitchen,  and 


Primer:  Enlarging. 


i53 


there  placing  the  box  frame  with  the  lenses 
in  it.  By  this  means  the  light  was  excluded 
as  completely  as  the  daylight  in  the  other 
method,  and  as  the  frame  for  the  lenses  was 
a  permanent  affair  it  was  onl)'  necessary  to 
fit  in  the  lens  boards,  set  up  the  lamp  and 
camera  and  screen  supports,  and  everything 
was  ready,  while  a  wood  panel  closed  the 
box  opening  when  not  in  use. 

For  daylight  enlarging — if  one  owns  a 
mirror  which  can  be  used — the  expense  in- 
volved will  not  exceed  five  dollars,  and  may 
be  less.  For  the  night  enlargement — grant- 
ing that  you  have  a  lamp  with  as  good  a  flame 
as  the  one  mentioned — you  will  only  need  to 
buy  a  reflector  costing  about  half  a  dollar,  the 
lens  boards,  which  a  carpenter  can  make  with 
a  pointed  saw,  and — the  condensing  lenses! 
The  pair  of  these  cost,  we  believe,  for  use  on 
a  \%  x  plate,  ten  dollars.  In  both  cases, 
of  course,  you  need  the  trays  for  development, 
washing  and  fixing,  three  in  all. 

Your  enlarged  pictures,  if  you  will  cultivate 
a  happy  stock  of  patience  at  the  outstart,  will 
yield  you  a  great  many  dollars'  worth  of  plea- 
sure and  satisfaction. 


Addendum. 


THE  HAND-CAMERA:  ITS 
SNARES  AND  VIRTUES. 


HE  growing  strength  of  photog- 
raphy as  a  popular  amusement 
and  relaxation  called  forth,  some 
years  ago,  lighter  and  more  di- 


minutive cameras  than  had  pre- 
viously been  made,  until  the  final  development 
on  this  line  was  the  hand-camera,  designed 
for  instantaneous  exposures,  which  were  eith- 
er made  while  the  camera  was  carried  in  the 
hand,  or  while  the  box  simply  rested  on  any 
temporary  support  which  might  be  handy 
to  the  operator.  One  of  the  strongest  ob- 
jections to  photography  amongst  those  who 
sought  it  as  an  amusement,  pure  and  simple, 
had  always  been  the  weight  of  the  apparatus 
and  its  cumbersome  form,  so  that  in  the  ear- 
lier days  of  amateur  apparatus  a  most  forcible 
argument  was  made  by  showing  the  old-style 
artist,  pack-laden  with  the  weight  of  his  wet- 
plate  apparatus,  and,  as  the  reverse  of  this 
the  then  modern  amateur  with  his  natty  little 

(157) 


158 


The  Photographic 


box  swung  jauntily  at  his  side.  Yet  these 
outfits  of  the  '8o's  are  to-day  almost  as  obso- 
lete in  respect  to  weight  and  compactness  as 
is  the  wet-plate  apparatus.  A  decade  has 
seen  the  portable  camera,  minus  tripod,  carry 
the  world  with  the  strength  of  a  fashionable 
fad.  To  be  able  to  "make  a  picture,"  irre- 
spective of  the  merit  in  the  same,  became  the 
devouring  ambition  of  a  delighted  public,  the 
joy  of  the  plate-maker,  and  a  source  of  groan- 
ing to  all  those  who  loved  real  artistic  work. 

The  hand-camera,  the  "detective"  camera, 
the  box-too-small-to-be-seen-camera,  is  one  of 
the  greatest  modern  delusions;  not,  be  it  said, 
because  the  manufacturers  always  promise 
miracles,  but  because  the  public  expects  them. 
In  only  a  few  instances  are  the  cameras  of 
this  class  advertised  to  do  more  than  they 
really  will;  but  it  must  be  noted,  in  passing, 
that  the  firms  who  do  promise  the  wonders 
are  a  great  nuisance  and  damage  to  the  art 
on  all  hands.  To  the  uninitiated  it  is  very 
charming  and  agreeable  to  believe  that  by 
expending  a  few  dollars  they  can  produce 
the  beautiful  pictures  they  have  seen  in  port- 
folios and  windows,  sans  experience,  sans 
skill.  It  would  be  interesting  to  know  how 
many  of  these  adventurous  beings  have  stored 
away  their  snap  cameras  in  a  loft,  or  given 
them  to  the  boys  to  play  with.    It  requires 


Primer:  The  Hand-Camera. 


i59 


but  about  a  month  to  show  the  purchaser 
that  a  camera  only  works  in  partnership  with 
care  and  study.  The  man  or  woman  who  only 
pushes  the  button  and  lets  some  one  else 
"do  the  rest"  might  well  let  the  business 
alone,  for  without  experience  in  the  chemi- 
cal work  of  photography  the  negatives  are 
good  only  by  accident,  and  "the  rest"  con- 
stantly yields  a  stock  of  blurred,  imperfect  pic- 
tures from  which  a  kinder  heaven  would  save 
all  of  us.  Of  course,  if  persons  of  an  inquir- 
ing mind  simply  want  the  sensation  of  work- 
ing a  snap-shutter  and  indulging  in  the  dream 
that  they  have  taken  a  picture,  any  cheap 
affair  will  satisfy  the  craving  ;  but  one  with 
an  ambition  to  make  good  pictures,  to  really 
take  delight  in  the  work,  ought  to  make  a 
better  start  with  the  regular,  simple  tripod 
camera,  reserving  any  expenditure  for  the 
other  sort  of  apparatus  until  the  technique 
of  the  business  is  well  mastered.  Cameras 
are  made  in  which  the  hand-camera  idea  is 
well  developed,  and  they  are  furnished  with 
ground  glass,  bellows  and  focusing  rack,  all 
contained  in  a  compact  case.  They  may  be 
carried  in  the  hand  and  used,  under  favorable 
conditions,  without  a  tripod,  but  they  also 
allow  the  operator  to  use  them  in  the  legiti- 
mate manner   necessary  to    careful  photo- 


160  The  Photographic 

graphic  work.  These  are  the  'so-called 
"folding"  cameras. 

For  it  must  not  be  taken  from  the  fore- 
going words  that  a  good  picture  cannot  be 
made  with  a  hand-camera,  but  that  the 
amount  of  judgment  and  skill  necessary  in 
using  one  successfully  is  much  in  excess  of 
that  required  with  a  regular  camera. 

The  objections  to  the  hand-camera  as  a  rule, 
and  what  we  may  call  its  snares,  are  these  : 

It  is  too  ready  for  use,  and  likely  to  be  "  fired"  with- 
out definite  or  studied  aim. 

For  this  reason  it  encourages  carelessness  and  a  dis- 
position to  shun  study. 

As  a  following  of  this  it  establishes  a  lower  standard 
of  criticism  as  to  results. 

An  abbreviated  exposure  on  all  subjects  is  almost 
absolutely  necessary. 

The  claim  that  you  can  make  proper  time  exposures 
by  regulating  the  shutter  is  answered  by  the  objection 

That  in  most  of  the  boxes  you  cannot  focus,  for  there 
is  no  ground  glass,  and  definition  becomes  a  poor  rule 
of  thumb. 

The  results  with  any  merit  are  therefore  made 
exceptional  rather  than  assured,  and  the  time  and 
labor  are  lost  to  the  operator. 

It  would  be  a  curious  story  if  one  knew 
how  many  people  had  forgotten  to  take  the 
cap  out  of  the  lens  hole  in  their  hand-cameras, 
when  they  were  excited  at  the  possibility  of 
getting  a  rare  picture.  One  good  story  is 
told  of   a   by-no-means   amateur  operator, 


Primer:  The  Hand-Camera. 


161 


who,  while  on  a  trip  in  the  western  states, 
sought  to  make  a  snap-shot  of  a  dusky  Indian 
belle  in  a  state  of  unadorned  nature.  He  was 
careful,  very  careful,  in  his  operations,  but 
when  the  film-roll  was  developed  at  home, 
that  particular  section  of  the  panorama  was 
void.  He  remarked  the  trouble  to  his  wife, 
who  had  been  with  him  at  the  time.  "Yes, 
I  knew  you  didn't  take  the  cap  off,"  she  re- 
sponded with  demure  triumph  of  virtue. 

Another  traveler  toured  the  Yellowstone, 
and  sought  to  make  his  lens  drink  in  all  the 
beauties  his  exposure  roll  would  hold.  He 
was  one  of  the  "some  other  fellow  do  the 
rest"  kind,  and  was  thunderstruck  when  his 
photographer  at  home  informed  him  that  the 
roll  was  blank.  "Did  he  ever  take  the  cap 
off?"  No,  he  had  just  pushed  the  button, 
and  trusted  the  rest  to  God  and  nature. 

These  be  the  snares  of  convenience  in  a 
hand-camera! 

That  no  camera  with  a  film  roll  has  as  yet 
been  a  constant  success,  or  even  a  partial 
one,  is  the  experience  and  belief  of  the  au- 
thors. That  the  film  is  nearly  always  false 
and  tricky,  is  the  opinion  of  a  great  many 
thousands  of  people  who  have  honestly  tried 
to  do  good  work  with  it.  We  wish  simply 
to  protest  against  the  endorsement  of  any 
camera,  in  the  present  state  of  knowledge, 


l62 


The  Photographic 


which  uses  a  roll  film,  unless  it  be  a  trans- 
fer film,  where  the  backing  or  body  of  the 
negative  is  not  an  untrustworthy  medium, 
but  paper  or  some  material  which  acts  sim- 
ply as  a  temporary  support,  and  from  which 
the  gelatine  emulsion  can  be  transferred  to 
glass.  If  it  were  not  for  the  trouble  and  risk 
of  failure  in  the  transfer,  this  would  offer  the 
best  means  of  carrying  a  rolled  film  in  the 
field. 

The  only  really  satisfactory  films  made  are 
the  flat,  cut  ones,  used  in  a  plate-holder 
the  same  as  glass  plates,  the  film  being  held 
flat  in  a  carrier  of  pasteboard.  But  no  sat- 
isfactory arrangement  seems  to  have  been 
devised,  as  yet,  by  which  these  films  can  be 
utilized  for  continuous  exposures  without  re- 
filling of  holders,  and  they  cannot  be  said  to 
play  a  part  in  the  hand-camera  field. 

^  iji  ^  *  % 

It  has  been  said  before  that  one  of  the  im- 
pediments to  full  freedom  in  photographic 
work  is  the  amount  of  time  necessary  to 
prepare  the  camera  for  action,  however  much 
reduced  with  modern  apparatus.  Some 
interesting  or  beautiful  subject,  fleeting  in 
character,  presents  itself ;  but  before  the 
camera  and  the  tripod  can  be  unpacked,  the 
opportunity  is  lost,  and  with  it  the  chance 
for  a  fine  picture.    It  is  here  that  a  camera 


Primer:  The  Hand-Camera. 


163 


ready  for  instant  use  offers  its  seductive  pres- 
ence, and  many  of  us  have  tried  the  best 
machines  made,  in  the  vain  hope  that  this 
once  we  might  down  the  foes  of  uncertain 
definition  and  exposure.  Beautiful  pictures 
have  rewarded  some  of  these  attempts,  but 
they  were  always  fortunate  accidents,  as  full 
of  chance  as  the  right  union  of  chemical 
atoms  in  the  philosopher's  elixir  of  life. 

It  is  to  be  admitted  that  some  of  the  neg- 
atives, if  poor,  are  very  priceless  as  personal 
possessions.  The  blurred  picture  of  some 
face  and  form  too  swiftly  removed  from  us 
forever,  the  record  of  some  passing  moment 
which  can  never  again  frame  itself  into  being. 
Records  of  this  character  throw  a  mantle  of 
charity  over  the  shortcomings  of  the  detective 
camera,  but  they  do  not  do  away  with  the 
wasted  hours,  opportunities  and  money,  fruit- 
less in  every  respect,  nor  do  they  defend  the 
vice  of  the  multitudes  of  bad  pictures.  Mil- 
let's rough  sketches  are  full  of  value  to  the  art 
world,  but  only  as  testimony  in  regard  to  the 
painter's  methods.  If  he  had  never  produced 
his  real  masterpieces,  but  had  kept  on  with 
vague  dashes  of  brush  or  chalk,  both  he  and 
the  sketches  would  have  slumbered  unknown. 

The  nearest  approaches  to  a  hand-camera 
with  successful  features  are  the  cameras  in 
which  the  focusing  track  and  bellows  are 


164 


The  Photographic  Primer. 


self-contained  in  a  case  forming  the  body 
of  the  box,  so  that  it  requires  but  an  in- 
stant to  open  them  and  throw  the  front 
out  on  its  track  in  full  position  for  work. 
Used  with  a  glass  plate  or  flat  film,  and 
carried  in  the  hand,  without  tripod,  they  can 
be  used  for  quick  exposures,  and  that  suc- 
cessfully, if  supplied  with  small  levels  to 
insure  holding  the  camera  properly.  They 
ought  not  to  be  used  thus  except  in  special 
emergencies,  but  the  fact  that  they  can  be, 
places  them  in  the  field  with  the  roll-film 
camera,  with  the  exception  of  the  limitation 
as  to  the  number  of  exposures.  This  limi- 
tation, however,  is  surely  a  virtue,  for  it 
takes  away  the  temptation  to  heedless  and 
duplicated  exposures  already  referred  to. 

If  virtue  in  a  photograph  is  represented  by 
careful  selection  of  subject,  good  definition 
and  full  and  regulated  exposure,  the  hand- 
camera  is  surely  but  an  adjunct  to  photog- 
raphy, and  not  an  active,  useful  force  in  it. 


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Robert  A.  Morrison  W.  Howard  Morrison 

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THE 

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POCKET  CAMERA 

A  Midget  in  Size 
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